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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
























THE 



GILDER, AND YARNISHER’S 
COMPANION. 


COMPRISING 


THE MANUFACTURE AND TEST OF PIGMENTS, THE ARTS OF PAINTING, 
GRAINING, MARBLING, STAINING, SIGN-WRITING, VARNISHING, GLASS- 
STAINING, AND GILDING ON GLASS; TOGETHER WITH COACH 
PAINTING AND VARNISHING, AND THE PRINCIPLES OF THE 
HARMONY AND CONTRAST OF COLORS. 


TWENTY-SEVENTH EDITION. 


REVISED, ENLARGED, AND IN GREAT PART REWRITTEN. 



BY 


WILLIAM T. BRANNT, 


Editor of “ Varnishes and Lacquers, Printing Inks and Sealing Waxes.” 


PHILADELPHIA: 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO., 

Industrial Publishers, Booksellers and Importers, 

810 WALNUT STREET. 


1894 , 


^'IpPYRlG 






Copyright, 

By HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO., 
1893. 





PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION. 


As shown by the constant demand for it, The 
Painter , Gilder and Varnisher 1 s Companion still 
retains the popularity and reputation it has for so 
many years enjoyed. 

The issue of a new edition having become neces¬ 
sary, the book has been thoroughly revised and en¬ 
tirely reconstructed, a very considerable amount of 
new matter having been added and old matter elim¬ 
inated, to bring the work up to modern times and 
make it still more useful to the reader. 

In making these additions the aim of the original edi¬ 
tion—to give a clear, concise and comprehensive view 
of the principal materials to be used and the opera¬ 
tions to be conducted in the practice of the various 
branches of the trades treated of—has been constantly 
kept in view. 

Numerous German and English works have been 
consulted, and special acknowledgments are due to 
the fourth edition of “ Muspratt’s Theoretische, Prak- 
tische and Analytische Chemie,” “ Oel und Buch- 
druckfarben” by Louis Edgar Andes, “ Painters’ Col¬ 
ours, Oils and Varnishes” by George H. Hurst, 

(iii)’ 



iv 


PREFACE. 


“The Chemistry of Paints and Painting,” by A. H. 
Church, and to other authorities. 

The book has also been provided with a copious 
table of contents and a very full index, which will 
render any subject easy and prompt of reference. 

W. T. B. 

Philadelphia, January 1 , 1894. 


CONTENTS. 


Tools and Apparatus. 

PAGE 

Color mill; Stone slab and muller. 1 

Grinding with the muller. 2 

Edge-runner mill. 3 

Cone mill; Mixing or pug mills. 5 

Roller mills .... 6 

Quantity of oil required to grind colors. 7 

Brushes. 8 

Palettes ; Mahl-stick ; Palette knife. 10 

Stopping knife; Gilder’s cushion . . . -.. 11 

Putty. 12 

Soft putty ; French putty ; Facing putty ; Indestructible 
putty ; Lime putty for wood ; Wood and glue putty ; 
Putty for floors ; To soften hard putty. 13 

Pigments. 

Qualities of good pigmentsj. 14 

White pigments. 15 

White lead ; Use of white lead by the ancients .... 16 

Constitution of white lead and theory of its formation . 17 

Manufacture of white lead. 18 

Dutch method or stack method. 19 

Fault of the Dutch process. 21 

Manufacture of white lead in the works of Walkers, 

Parker & Co., England. 22 

German or chamber method. 23 

(v) 






















vi 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Hatfield process ; Faults of the German or chamber pro¬ 
cess . 24 

French method or wet precipitation process ; Thenard’s 

process. 25 

Ozoufis method ; Preparation of white lead from lith¬ 
arge . 26 

Pattinson’s white lead; Martin’s method of preparing 
white lead ; Millner’s process of preparing white lead. 27 
Sublimed white lead, Lewis’ patent; Bartlett lead ; Free¬ 
man’s non-poisonous white lead. 28 

Properties of white lead. 29 

Commercial white lead; Venetian white; Hamburg 

white ; Dutch white ; Kremnitz white. 30 

Testing white lead. 31 

Blow-pipe test. 33 

Zinc white ; Chinese white. 34 

Testing zinc white. 35 

Orr’s white enamel or Charlton white ; Griffith’s patent 
zinc white; Barytes or heavy spar; Preparation of 

heavy spar as a pigment. 36 

Floated barytes ; Permanent white or blanc fix ... . 37 

Gypsum ; Plaster of Paris. 38 

Terra alba; Mineral white; Satin white; Whiting or 

Spanish white ; Paris white ; English white. 39 

Kaolin or China clay; Characteristics for distinguishing 

white pigments. 40 

Red pigments ; Vermilion ; Dry and wet ways of prepar¬ 
ing vermilion. 42 

Adulterations of vermilion ; Red lead or minium ... 44 

Orange lead; Iron reds. 45 

Rouge, light red, Indian red, red oxide, Venetian red, 

purple oxide, scarlet red, etc. . . •. 46 

Venetian red. 47 






















CONTENTS. vfl 

PAGE 

Antimony vermilion or antimony orange; Brilliant scar¬ 
let ; Tuscan red. 48 

Derby red, chrome vermilion or Austrian vermilion . . 49 

Characteristics of red pigments. 51 

Yellow and orange pigments; Chromes; Normal chro¬ 
mate of lead.52 

Pure lemon yellow; Pure chrome yellow; American 

chrome yellow . 53 

Chrome orange ; Common chrome orange. 54 

Testing chromes ; Zinc chrome ; Barium chrome ; Turn¬ 
er’s yellow, Cassel yellow, Montpelier yellow or Ver¬ 
ona yellow. 55 

Naples yellow. 56 

King’s yellow ; Realgar, arsenic orange . .. 57 

Cadmium yellow ; Orange cadmium. 58 

Cobalt yellow, aureolin ; Yellow ochre. 59 

Oxford ochre ; Stone ochre ; Sienna, terra di Sienna . . 60 

Orange ochre or Spanish ochre ; Mars orange ; Indian 

yellow or Purree ..61 

Characteristics of yellow and orange pigments. 63 

Green pigments ; Brunswick green ; Modern Brunswick 

greens. 64 

Chrome green ; Amaudon’s green. 66 

Plessy’s green ; Schnitzer’s green ; Verdigris or acetate 
of copper 67 

Scheele’s green or mineral green. 68 

Schweinfurth green or emerald green ........ 69 

Bremen green . . .. 70 

Casselmann’s green ; Stannate of copper, or Gen tele’s 
green ; Terre verte ; Verona green ; Verona earth . . 71 

Rinmann’s green, cobalt green, or zinc green ; Sap green 72 

Characteristics of green pigments.73 

Blue pigments ; Ultramarine ; Artificial ultramarine . . 74 




















Vlll 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Sulphate ultramarine .. 75 

Soda ultramarine. 76 

Silica ultramarine. 77 

Violet ultramarine ; Red'ultramarine . .. 78 

Prussian blue, Berlin blue, or Chinese blue ; Soluble 

blue, Antwerp blue, Brunswick blue. 79 

Soluble Prussian blue; Turnbull’s blue; Brunswick 

blue. 80 

Cobalt blue ; Smalt. 81 

Thenard’s blue, or LeithnePs blue; Caeruleum, ceru¬ 
lean blue. 82 

Mountain blue, azurite or blue malachite. 83 

Brown pigments ; Umber. 83 

Burnt umber ; Vandyke brown, Cassel earth. 84 

Cappagh brown, or euchrome; Manganese brown ; 

Sepia ; Cologne earth ; Bone brown. 85 

Bistre. 86 

Black pigments; Lamp-black . 86 

Materials used in the manufacture of lamp-black ... 87 

Thenius’ furnace for the production of lamp-black ; Man¬ 
ufacture of lamp-black in the United States. 88 

Gas-black or carbon-black ; Ivory-black and bone-black . 89 

Frankfort black; Prussian black; Black lake; Tannin 

black. 90 

Lakes ; Coloring principle of lakes ; Preparation of lakes. 91 

Carmine ... 92 

Carmine lake ; Brazil wood lake ; Madder lake .... 93 

Yellow lake ; Orange carmine or orange lake ; Violet 

lake. 94 

Aniline lakes ; Colors precipitated by tannic acid ; Colors 
precipitated by picric acid ; Colors precipitated by ace¬ 
tate of lead. 95 

Colors precipitated by alumina sulphate ; Colors precipi- 


















CONTENTS. 


ix 


PAGE 

tated by barium chloride; Preparation of aniline 


lakes. 96 

Fuchsin lake ; Green lake ; Scarlet lake ; Yellow lake ; 
Vermilionettes and royal reds. 97 

Grinding and Washing Colors. 

Grinding colors with the use of the muller. 99 

Washing colors.101 

Mixing colors with varnish or oil ..102 


Compound Colors, Oils and Varnishes. 

Light gray ; Buff; Silver or pearl gray ; Flaxen gray ; 

Brick color ; Oak-wood color.104 

Walnut-tree color ; Jonquil; Lemon yellow ; Orange 
color ; Violet color ; Purple ; Carnation ; Gold color; 

Olive color ; Lead color ; Chestnut color.105 

Light timber color ; Flesh color; Light willow green ; 
Grass green; Stone color; Dark lead color; Fawn 
color; Chocolate color; Portland stone color; To 
imitate mahogany ; To imitate wainscot; To imitate 

satin wood.106 

Oils ; Oil of spike ; Oil of lavender ; Oil of poppies . . 107 

Nut oil and linseed oil.108 

Oil of Turpentine ; Fat oils.110 

Drying oils.Ill 

Pilchard oil.112 

Varnishes ; Principal gums and resins used for varnishes. 113 

Spirits of wine ..114 

Spirits of turpentine.115 

Shellac varnish; Prof. Hare’s method of producing 

colorless shellac varnish.116 

Shellac varnish of various colors ; Red shellac varnish ; 
Turpentine varnish...117 


















X 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Linseed oil varnish ; Copal varnish ; Gold colored copal 

varnish. .118 

Camphorated copal varnish ; Copal varnish in imitation 

of tortoise shell.119 

Excellent copal varnish.120 

Amber varnish.121 

Caoutchouc, or gum elastic varnish ; Mastic varnish . . 122 

Varnish for violins, etc.123 

White hard varnish; Varnishes for paling ond coarse 

wood-work.124 

Varnish for colored drawings ; Varnish for glass ; Black 
varnish for old straw or chip hats 125 

Varnish for drawings and card work; Changing var¬ 
nishes .126 

Mordant varnishes.127 

General observations on varnishes.128 

Keeping of varnishes ; Caution in preparing varnishes . 130 
Additional receipts for compound colors; Zinc gray; 

Silver gray ; Iron gray ; Pearl gray ; Imperial gray . 131 
Diamond color; Bridge gray ; Gray grounding paint; 

Leaf green ; Imperial green ; Oak colors ; Ochre yel¬ 
low ; Tile red ; Brick red ; Brown ; Chrome yellow ; 

Minium red ; Ultramarine blue .132 

Buff; Chestnut; Chocolate; Claret; Copper ; Dove ; 

Drab ; Fawn ; Flesh ; Freestone ; French gray ; Gold ; 
Green bronze ; Green pea; Lemon ; Limestone ; Olive ; 
Orange ; Peach ; Pearl; Pink ; Purple ; Rose ; Sand¬ 
stone ; Snuff; Violet.133 

Practice of Painting. 

Outside work ; Filling up with putty; Priming .... 134 

Laying on the different coats.135 

Proper use of the brush ; Inside work.136 
















CONTENTS. Xi 

PAGE 

Painting panelling of wainscot; Painting in distemper . 137 
Coloring substances applicable in distemper; Prepara¬ 
tion of the ground for distemper. 138 

Badigeon. ..239 

Painting in milk ; Preparation of milk paint.140 

Caseine vehicle for pigments ; Preparation of caseine var¬ 
nish .142 

Thick caseine varnish ; Medium thick caseine varnish ; 

Thin caseine varnish. 143 

Pure caseine paints ; Black ; Yellow ; White ; Red ; En¬ 
glish red ; Blue ; Green ; Ochre ; Oil paints with caseine 
varnish ; Black ; Yellow ; White ; Red ; English red ; 

Blue ; Green ; Ochre ; Paints with linseed oil varnish 

and caseine varnish.144 

Black; Yellow; White; Red; English *ed; Blue; 

Green ; Ochre ; Silicate paints.145 

Rules for painting.146 

Flatting.149 

Fresco .150 

Seagliola.152 

Cleanliness in Working. 

The principal end aimed at by the painter, varnisher and 
gilder ; Preparation of surfaces to be painted .... 153 
Cleaning brushes.154 

Directions for Graining and Imitating Woods and 

Marbles. 

Oak ; Tools required ; Combs 156 

Brushes ; Colors ; Boards for practising.157 

Graining color.158 

Spirit color.160 

Pollard oak.161 





















CONTENTS. 


• • 

Xll 

PAGE 

Root of oak ; To grain pollard oak and root of oak in 

distemper. .162 

Walnut; Bird’s-eye maple in distemper.163 

To grain maple in oil . . . • •.165 

Satin wood.166 

Mahogany in distemper ; Mahogany in oil.167 

Rosewood . .,.168 

Principal marbles for adaptation to general use in decor¬ 
ation ; Sienna.169 

Black and gold marble . . . 170 

Saint Ann’s marble ; Verd antique, or ancient green . . 171 

Egyptian green ; Rouge roi, or royal red.172 

Italian jasper.,.173 

Dove marble ; Black bardella; Derbyshire spar . ... 174 

Granites.175 

To polish imitation marbles.176 

Staining. 

Application of stains.177 

Blue stains. 178 

Cherry stain ; Ebony stains .179 

Mahogany stains. 181 

Oak stains.183 

Red stains ; Rosewood stains ; Walnut stains.184 

Practical experiments in producing new colors upon 
wood with known coloring matter.185 

Instructions for Sign Writing. 

Best models for acquiring a practical knowledge of the 

forms of letters in use.190 

Tools required for practising ; Manner of practising . . 191 
Setting-out or arrangement of letters ; To raise or make 
letters appear to stand out from the board, and to 
shadow them.192 
























CONTENTS. 


Xlll 


PAGE 


To gild letters . *.193 

To write, gild, and ornament on glass.194 


Complete Instructions for Coach Painting and 

Varnishing. 

Qualifications of the workroom ; Preparation of the oil 
used in painting; Boiled oil and its disadvantages . . 196 
Advantages of raw oil; Preparation of raw oil for use ; 


Paint for the priming coat . 198 

Getting an even surface on the work of the body ; Use of 
grained sole leather in smoothing after priming . . . 199 

Rough-stuffing.200 

Treatment of the body after it is ironed and hung on the 

carriage.201 

Finishing up to receive the color.202 

Putting on the color.203 

Puttying up imperfect joints or checks.204 

Rubbing down after the second coat.205 

Varnishing.206 

To prevent paint or varnish from crawling.207 

Ornamenting and striping .... 208 

Process of putting the ornament on the panel of a car¬ 
riage .209 

Shading ; How to make a very tasty ornament; Rules 

for arranging the colors in striping.211 

Mixing the paint and oil for striping ; Laying on the gilt 

for a gilt stripe.212 

Pencils for striping.213 

Varnishing after striping.214 

Polishes. 

Varnish polish. 220 

Polish for dark-colored woods ; Polish for Tunbridge- 
ware goods, etc.221 




















xiv 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Carver’s polish ; French polish ; Water-proof polish . . 222 
Finishing polish ; Polish for wainscot; White polish for 
lights woods ; French polish for carved w r ood in furni¬ 


ture .223 

Polish for wood ; Polish for carved cabinet ware . . . 224 

Renovating polish for fine carved work ; Mahogany pol¬ 
ish ; Red polish.225 

Polish for satinwood or maple ; French polish .... 226 


Practice of Varnishing and Polishing. 

Filling up knots and blemishes ; Handling the brush ; 
Varnishing turned articles ; Application of varnish to 


painting in distemper.227 

Rubbing down and polishing the varnish.228 

To clean and polish old furniture ; French polish . . . 229 

Waxing.232 

Polishing wax furniture.233 


On Lacquering. 

Lacquer for brass; Lacquer for philosophical instru¬ 
ments .234 

Gold-colored lacquer for brass watch-cases, watch-keys, 

etc.235 

To make lacquer of various tints ; to clean old brass work 

for lacquering.236 

Process of lacquering brass.237 

Lacquer for sign painters ; Black lacquer for wood ; Lac¬ 
quer for floors ; Red lacquer for wood.238 

Ebony lacquer for woodwork ; Lacquer for basket and 

wicker work.. . 239 

Lacquer for wall paper.240 















CONTENTS. 


XV 


Bronzing. 


page 


Ingredients made use of in bronzing ; Preparation of the 

bronze.241 

Bronzing on wood; Bronzing iron; Bronzing casts of 

plaster of Paris.242 

Bronze paint; Liquid for bronzing paper, leather, glass, 

etc. ; Bronze paint for plaster.243 

Bronze paint for iron or brass ; Antique bronze ; Bronz¬ 
ing inlaid work ; To bronze steam pipes used for steam 

heating ; Size for bronze powder for iron.244 

Bronzing wood.245 


Japanning. 

Preparation of work for japanning; Grinding the colors ; 

Colors required in japanning.246 

To prepare a fine tortoise-shell japan ground by means of 


heat; Japan finishing.247 

Imitation of japanning.249 

Gilding Materials. 

True gold powder : Color-heightening compositions . . 251 

Mosaic gold.252 

Dutch or German gold ; Ethereal solution of gold . . . 253 
Gold oil colors, or size; Gold water size ; Preparatory 

size.255 

White coating; Coloring yellow.256 

Vermeil; Composition for moulding.257 

Gold size ; Oil size for gilding ; GildeP s wax.258 

Solution for gilding silver.260 

Practice of Gilding 

Gilding carved wood with water size.261 

Gilding plaster or marble with water size.265 

















xvi 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Gilding wood in oil; To gild steel.266 

To gild copper, brass, etc. ; Gilding glass and porcelain. 267 

Gilding leather.268 

Gilding writings, drawings, etc., on paper or parch¬ 
ment .269 

Gilding the edge of paper ; Oil gold on wood.270 

Gilding on wood in the open air.274 

Regilding frames.275 

To gild signs ; Gilding glass.276 

To repair lustre gilding; Gilding on granite; To gild 
letters on marble.277 

Foils. 

Varieties of foils ; Materials for foils.278 

To color foils.279 

Glass Staining 

Precaution in joining the pieces of colored glass ; Pig¬ 
ments used in painting on glass. 283 

Vehicle for the colors ; Vitritiable colors ; Proportions oi 

the ingredients of various fluxes.284 

Gray flux; Flux for carmines and greens; Substances 
from which the various colors used in glass painting 

are obtained.285 

Colors used in the porcelain manufacture of Sevres ; In¬ 
digo blue .286 

Turquoise blue ; Azure blue ; Deep azure blue ; Sky blue 

for the browns. .287 

Violet blue for ground color ; Lavender blue for ground 

tint; Emerald green.288 

Bluish green ; Grass green ; Dragon, pistaclie and olive 

green.289 

Sulphur yellow; Fixed yellow for touches; Yellow for 
browns and greens.290 






















CONTENTS. 


XVII 


PAGE 

Deep yellow to mix with the chromium greens; Jon- 
quille yellows for flowers ; Wax yellow ; Fixed wax 

yellow.291 

Nankin yellow for grounds ; Deep nankin yellow ; Pale 
yellow ochre; Deep yellow ochre, called yellow 

brown ; Brown yellow ochre.292 

Isabella yellow for grounds ; Orange yellow for grounds ; 

Brick red ; Deep blood red ; Colors of gold.293 

Hard carmine; Pure purple; Deep violet; Colors of 

iron .294 

Flesh red ; Clove brown.295 

Wood brown ; Hair brown ; Liver brown ; Sepia brown ; 

White. 296 

Yellowish-gray for browns and reds. Bluish-gray for 

mixtures ; Grayish-black for mixtures.297 

Deep black ; Application of the colors.298 

Furnace for firing the paintings.300 

Fisn Oil and Rosin Oil Paints. 

To prepare the fish oil.304 

Gain by the use of prepared fish oil.305 

Preparation and cost of particular colors ; Subdued green 306 

Lead color.307 

Bright green.303 

Stone color ; Brown red.309 

Chocolate color; Yellow; Black; Rosin oil paints; 

Preparation of pinolin and rosin oil.310 

Preparation of the basis-mass for the pigments; Receipts 

for rosin oil paints.311 

White ; Gray ; Brown ; Green ; Yellow ; Yellow brown ; 

Tile red; English red; Blue.312 

Miscellaneous Materials. 

Painter’s cream ; Rotten stone.313 



















xviii 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Glue and isinglass ; Common size.314 

Size from glove leather.315 

Miscellaneous Subjects and Useful Receipts. 

To increase the strength of common rectified spirits of 

wine, so as to make it equal to the best.316 

To silver by heat.317 

To tin copper and brass ; To tin iron and copper vessels 318 
To paint sail cloth, so as to make it pliant, durable and 

water-proof; To make oil cloth .319 

To prepare varnished silk; To paint cloth, cambric, 
sarcenet, etc., so as to render them transparent . . . 321 
To thicken linen cloths for screens ; Printer’s ink . . . 322 

Sticking, or court plaster.323 

To imitate tortoise-shell with horn.324 

Varnish to preserve glass from the rays of the sun ; To 

imitate rosewood.325 

To imitate black rosewood ... 326 

Fine black varnish for coaches and iron work ; Varnish 
to imitate the Chinese ; To clean silver furniture 327 

To color the backs of chimneys with lead ore; To clean 
marble, sienna, jasper, porphyry, etc.; A white for 
inside painting which, in about four hours, dries and 

leaves no smell.328 

To take ink spots out of mahogany ; To make paste for 

furniture.329 

To make oil for furniture; To brown gun barrels; To 

clean pictures.330 

Varnish for clock faces, etc.331 

Varnish for balloons.332 

Hugoulin’s method of preparing oil paints.333 

Balmain’s luminous paint.335 

Preparation of luminous paint ..338 



















CONTENTS. Xix 

PAGE 

Gustav Schatte’s durable white or colored luminous 
paints; Pure white luminous paint ; Red luminous 

paint; Orange luminous paint. 339 

Yellow luminous paint; Green luminous paint; Blue 
luminous paint; Violet luminous paint; Gray lumi¬ 
nous paint; Yellowish brown luminous paint ... 340 

Paint for vessels, submarine works, etc.; Imitation ma¬ 
hogany .341 

Black enamel for wood ; Driers ; Patent driers .... 342 
Zumatic drier; Guynemer’s drier; Painter’s driers; 
Oxidized oil drier; To prepare zinc for painting; 

Wood fillers.343 

Hard wood filler; German wood filling; Filling for 

cracks.344 

Knotting ; Mixing kalsomine.345 

Cleaning and restoring works in oil painting ; Removing 

varnish from pictures or fine work. 346 

Removing paint from woodwork, etc.348 

Diseases and Accidents to which Painters and Var- 

NISHERS ARE PARTICULARLY LIABLE. 

Painter’s colic.349 

Weakness of the wrists.352 

Effects of poisonous substances used in painting and var¬ 
nishing .353 

Nausea ; Burns and scalds.356 

General observations.358 

General Principles of Harmony and Contrast of 

Colors. 

By Charles Martel. 


Establishment by M. Chevreul of the existence of a law 
which governs the phenomena of contrast of colors . 361 














XX 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Definitions.362 

Analysis of light and color ; The source of color .... 363 
The type or standard of color ; On the mixture of colors 364 

Colors of objects ; Complementary colors.367 

Circumstances which modify a color.368 

Modifications produced in a color by being placed in 

contact with another color.369 

Result' of placing colors in contiguity; First group.— 

Two compound colors, having the same simple color 
in each ; Orange with green ; Second group.—A com¬ 
pound color with a simple color which forms a part 

of the compound ; Orange with red.372 

Orange with yellow ; Third group.—Two simple colors ; 

Red with yellow ; Yellow with blue ; Red with blue ; 
Fourth group.—Two compounds composed of the same 
simple colors; Indigo and violet; Fifth group.—A 
compound color, and a simple color which is not 
found in the compound ; Orange and blue; Green and 

red ; Violet and greenish yellow. 373 

influence of gloss and of form upon the effect of contrast 
of two colors ; Binary associations of colors ; Associa¬ 
tion of complementary colors ; Association of non-com- 

plementary colors.374 

In the association of two colors of equal tone, the height 
of the tone may influence the beauty of the association 375 
Influence of the contiguity of white on colors .... 376 

Influence of the contiguity of black on colors.377 

Influence of the contiguity of gray on colors.378 

Harmony of colors ; First group.—Harmonies of analo¬ 
gous colors ; Second group.—Harmonies of contrast . 379 
On the selection of the kind of harmony for a given ob¬ 
ject .381 

Index.383 












THE 


PAINTER, CILDER, AND VARNISHER'S 

COMPANION. 

TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 

Before entering upon any details respecting the 
nature, use, and composition of the substances em¬ 
ployed by the painter, gilder and varnisher, a descrip¬ 
tion of the tools and apparatus necessary in these 
occupations, with directions for their selection and 
proper use, will be given. 

Paints are prepared for use by grinding the dry pig¬ 
ments with oil. This is done on a large scale in a 
color mill, and on a small scale, by means of a stone 
slab and muller. To be sure, colors ready for work are 
sold at the paint shops, but these cannot always be 
depended on ; and further several of the colors, such 
as lakes, Prussian blue, etc., deteriorate in quality by 
being kept long after grinding, and it is, therefore, 
important that these should be prepared by the painter 
himself. 

The slab is a flat piece of porphyry, marble, or other 

( 1 ) 



2 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

close-grained stone. The muller is a semi-ellipsoidal 
boulder, cut in halves, or flattened at one end. For 
general purposes it should not be less than four inches 
across the flat base, and should be of sufficient length 
to allow of its being grasped by both hands. Where 
this is not the case, and when the muller does not 
afford sufficient purchase for the hands, it is apt to tilt 
over towards the back or front and thus these edges 
become rounded, and the under surface of the muller 
becomes curved instead of being perfectly flat. 

If the dry pigment is in lumps, and of a brittle 
character, it should, in the first instance, be pounded 
in a mortar, and passed through a rather fine sieve. 
It should then be mixed with a sufficient quantity of 
linseed oil to form a thick paste. A portion of this is 
then to be taken on the palette knife, and placed on 
the slab to be ground by the muller. If, however, the 
dry pigment is of a very soft character, like chrome 
yellow, or in powder, like ultramarine, it will not be 
necessary to employ the mortar, but the pigment may 
be mixed with oil on the slab by means of the palette 
knife, and when just saturated the muller may be used. 
Brittle pigments should, however, never be worked in 
this way, as they chip under the knife or muller, and 
great waste and other inconveniences are the conse¬ 
quence. 

In grinding the pigment, the muller should be 
worked towards and from the workman, and also oc¬ 
casionally in a circular direction; but the backward 
and forward motions are the best, as a certain amount 
of pressure can better be brought to bear on the pig¬ 
ment, and the flat surface of the muller is better pre¬ 
served. As the work proceeds the paint should be 
scraped up by means of the palette knife from all parts 


TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 


3 


of the slab, to be again brought under the influence of 
the muller, from the edge of which it should also be 
gathered. There is no economy in placing a large 
quantity of color at one time on the slab; a small por¬ 
tion, spread over the whole surface, will form a thin 
film, and will thus be more quickly and more effici¬ 
ently ground than a thicker mass. As soon as the 
quantity of color is sufficiently smooth, it is to be re¬ 
moved, and a further supply placed on the slab. 


Fig. 1. 



Where large quantities of pigments are to be ground, 
a grinding mill becomes a necessary part of the outfit 
of a paint-shop. The simplest and oldest grinding 
mill is the so-called edge-runner mill. The essential 
principle of such a mill is that of a circular stone or 
runner, set edgeways, and running in a circular basin- 















































































































4 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

shaped trough, or hopper and bed, on which the ma¬ 
terial to be ground is placed, and the stone rolling over 
it crushes it to powder. Fig. 1 shows an edge-runner 

Fig. 2. 



mill, such as is especially used for color grinding. It 
is made in several sizes for hand or steam-power. Its 
capacity will necessarily vary with the character of 
the material which is being ground. Much, too, de- 







































































TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 


5 


pends upon the degree of fineness of the grinding; the 
finer it is, the smaller will be the quantity turned out. 

The cone-mill shown in Fig. 2 is another form of 
grinding mill. In this mill the top grinding surface is 
formed by the bottom edge of a fixed hopper, into 
which the material to be ground is fed. The bottom 
grinding surface is made of a conical shape, and fits 
closely against the edge of the hopper. The actual 
grinding surfaces are portions only of the hopper and 
cone respectively, and these portions are usually cor¬ 
rugated so as to increase the grinding action, the cor¬ 
rugations starting from the centre and tapering towards 
the outer edges, to which, however, they do not ex¬ 
tend. A screw arrangement under the mill serves to 
regulate the distances apart of the two surfaces and 
consequently the fineness of grinding. The material 
is fed into the hopper, a revolving knife in which 
serves to keep the materials well mixed together. The 
ground material passes out from between the surfaces, 
is scraped off by a suitable scraper, and collects in a 
box or trough provided for the purpose. This cone 
mill is made in various sizes, from mills small enough 
to be driven by hand to those large enough to require 
power. 

Mixing or Pug Mills. These mills serve for mix¬ 
ing the dry, pulverulent pigments with the oil, either 
to form the stiff paste in which so much of the paint¬ 
er’s pigments is now sold, or to mix the pigment, oil, 
etc., into paint ready for use. 

Fig. 3 shows a mixing or pug mill constructed by 
J. M. Lehmann, of Dresden, Saxony. The mill con¬ 
sists of a strong iron frame in which rests a cylindri¬ 
cal trough which by means of a cog-wheel gearing re¬ 
volves around its axis. In the trough itself is the 


6 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

actual mixing arrangement in the form of segmental, 
reticulate blades, which in conjunction with the re¬ 
volving motion of the trough effect an intimate mix¬ 
ture of the pigment and oil. 

Roller Mills. These mills are used for grinding col¬ 
ors mixed with oil; they cannot be used for dry colors 
at all. The principle on which most of them work is 



that the color previously mixed with oil, is fed between 
the first and second rollers, where it gets a first grind¬ 
ing and then, adhering to the middle roller, it is car¬ 
ried around, and again ground between the middle 
and the last roller; then passing round the third rol¬ 
ler, is scraped off by the delivery roller and delivered 
into a receiver. 

Fig. 4 shows a roller mill as constructed by J. M. 
Lehmann, of Dresden. It is provided with three very 











TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 


7 


finely polished rollers of green porphyry, which are 
harder than steel, and possess the property of the color 
adhering well to them, in consequence of which the 
finest grinding and greatest capacity are attained. 
With proper treatment of the mill it is impossible for 
the color to be forced over the edges of the rollers. 

Fig. 4. 



The rollers revolve at different speeds and the front 
roller has besides a lateral motion to and fro. 

The quantity of oil required to grind colors into the 
stiff paste in which they are now generally sold varies 
considerably with different pigments, some requiring 
a comparatively small quantity of oil, others a rela¬ 
tively large quantity. The following table furnished 
by G. H. Hurst will give some idea of the proportions 


























8 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

usually adopted, which are essentially the same both 
for raw and for boiled linseed oil: 


White lead. 

- n 

per cent, of oil. 

Zinc white. 

. 22 

a 


Barytes. 

. 7 

a 

a 

Putty. 

. 18 

a 

a 

Black. 

. 27 

a 

a 

Brunswick green . . 

. 11 

a 

a 

Red oxides. 

. 10 

a 

a 

Brunswick blue . . 

. 11 

a 

a 

Oxford ochre .... 

• 16J 

a 

a 

Burnt Turkey umber 

. 29 

a 

a 

English umber . . . 

. 20 

a 

a 

Vandyke brown . . 

. 40 

a 

a 

Siennas. 

. 37i 

a 

a 

Black in turps. . . . 

. 55 

a 

of turpentine. 


In mixing or thinning paints for use, it must be 
pointed out that, for outdoor work, boiled oil is prin¬ 
cipally or wholly employed, unless it be for decorative 
parts of houses, when a portion of turpentine and pale 
linseed oil is often added. For indoor work, linseed 
oil, turpentine, with a small quantity of driers, are 
generally used in the same way. The smaller the pro¬ 
portion of oil employed for the purpose, the less will 
be the gloss and the greater the ultimate hardness of 
the coating. For flatted white, etc., the color being 
ground in oil requires scarcely any further addition 
but turpentine, the object being to keep it flat or dull. 

Brushes. The painter or varnisher should be very 
circumspect in the choice of his brushes, because no 
matter how well skilled he may be, a poor, ill-shaped 
brush will retard his progress and in a measure spoil 
his work. There are two very important points to 















TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 


9 


bear in mind when selecting a brush, viz., is it well 
made, and is it of good material? A brush to do good, 
durable service should have good stock in the centre, 
because whether ground down or chiseled by wear, the 
centre makes the point. When the point is gone the 
brush is a stub, and that will soon happen when a 
brush is tilled with short, uneven, inferior bristles. 

The brushes used are of various sizes and kinds. 
The largest are called pound brushes. The large 
brushes are also termed “four O,” “six O,” and “eight 
O,” the latter being the largest. These are made both 
round and flattened, or elliptical. These elliptical 
brushes are found very convenient in practice, as they 
take less time to work into the shape required for 
spreading the paint. Paint brushes are bound either 
with string or copper wire. They are sometimes used 
as dusters before being put into oil, by which they be¬ 
come softened. This practice, however, cannot be 
recommended, for a certain amount of dust necessarily 
finds its way up the brush, and is liable to work out 
when it is being used for painting purposes, thus giv¬ 
ing the work a coarse and gritty appearance, and 
causing much annoyance. 

The smaller brushes are called tools or sash tools , 
and may be obtained in about a dozen different sizes, 
some bound with string, others fixed in tin. The 
smallest hog-hair brushes are called fitches, and are 
used for small work where the tools, would be too large. 
The smallest brushes are the camel's hair , with long 
or short hair, according to the work to be done. 

The dusting brushes have longer hairs than the 
painting brushes. They are so bound that they spread 
outward at their points, which are thus prevented ad¬ 
hering, and the dust is more easily shaken from them. 


10 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Varnish brushes may be had in different sizes, and 
also made flat and of different breadths for varnishing 
pictures and other fine work. 

When engaged upon work which will require the 
use of small brushes for some time—as in painting a 
narrow moulding or beading—it is customary instead 
of having the colors in pots or pans, to dispose them 
in such quantities as they are likely to be wanted in, 
upon a palette. By a marbler and letter painter the 
palette is employed to the entire exclusion of the 
paint-pot. 

Palettes are made of mahogany, or of satin or other 
light woods, which are to be jireferred to those of 
mahogany whenever light tints are to be mixed on 
them. They should be of as little weight as possible, 
and should diminish in thickness towards their distant 
end. The oblong form is to be preferred to the ellip¬ 
tical, as it affords more room for colors. New palettes 
should be prepared for use by rubbing raw linseed oil 
repeatedly over them until they will absorb no more, 
the last coat being allowed to dry in, as much as pos¬ 
sible, and the palette being then well rubbed, it will 
not after this be stained by absorption of color. 

In connection with the palette the mahl-stick has to 
be mentioned. This is simply a smooth stick, having 
a ball of wool, covered with a piece of kid or wash- 
leather, at its end. It is used as a rest for the hand in 
letter painting or •other fine work. It should, there¬ 
fore, be quite stiff, so that it may not bend under the 
weight of the hand. 

The palette knife is a long and very flexible knife, 
with blunt edges and rounded at the end. As its 
name implies, it is intended for mixing colors on, or 
scraping them off from, the palette. In using it, it 


TOOLS AND APPARATUS. 


11 


should be held as flat as possible, so as to avoid scratch¬ 
ing the palette. A similarly shaped implement of 
larger size is called the stone knife , and is used in con¬ 
nection with the slab. 

The stopping knife is used in stopping cracks, etc., 
with putty. The knife is shorter in proportion than 
the palette knife, is spear-shaped, broad and stiff, so as 
to be adapted to bear the force necessary to press the 
putty into the crevices, etc. The tools used in grain¬ 
ing are described in the chapter relating to that 
subject. 

The gilder' 1 s cushion , upon which when gilding he 
places the leaves taken from the book of gold, corres¬ 
ponds with the painter’s palette. It is a small board, 
covered first with baize or cloth and afterwards with 
wash leather, which is tightly stretched over it. This 
cushion is supplied with a loop underneath into which 
the thumb passes, the cushion resting on the hand in 
much the same way as a palette does. There is also 
an edging or wall made of parchment on three sides 
of the cushion, and this in some degree prevents the 
gold-leaf blowing away. 

There are other articles which are desirable or even 
indispensable for the painter, gilder or varnisher to 
have among his apparatus, but which do not require 
special description, such as dusting-cloths, pots and 
pans of different sizes to hold paints, a large pestle 
and mortar, hair and silk sieves, square and rule, com¬ 
passes and black lead pencils. 

Filling in and making good all nail holes, bad joints, 
cracks, etc., with putty forms an important part of the 
painter’s work, and, therefore, a description of the 
materials used for the purpose and the mode of prepar¬ 
ing them may here be given. 


12 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Putty may be considered as a cement. The best 
putty is made from carefully selected fine dry whiting 
and pure linseed oil or linseed oil varnish, the latter 
drying more quickly. The whiting should be passed 
through a sieve, the meshes being forty-two threads to 
the inch. It is then thoroughly incorporated with the 
oil. The product has no unpleasant smell, dries 
readily on exposure to the air, does not turn yellow 
with age, nor stain yellow through the paint with 
which it is covered, is easily manipulated and does not 
harden in closed cans or barrels. 

Inferior putties are made from marble dust, which 
saves oil; cliff-stone sand, which serves the same pur¬ 
pose ; putty-powder, of which the constituents vary; 
fish oil, which has a disagreeable, characteristic odor, 
and is non-drying; and petroleum oils, which are also 
non-drying. 

The fault induced by the use of coarse or improper 
bases is the so-called “shortness” or lack of tenacity, 
which makes the putty break into fragments under 
the knife. Fish oil, besides its bad odor, lias, in com¬ 
mon with the mineral oils, the fault of never drying 
perfectly hard, while the latter, in time, strike through 
and discolor the paint used over them. 

Large masses of putty after being opened should 
never be allowed to stand exposed to the air without a 
covering of linseed oil, which excludes the air and 
prevents hardening. Small quantities should be kept 
in oiled paper or under water. 

A putty which requires to be made as wanted (as it 
gets hard almost immediately) is composed of red lead 
in powder mixed with boiled oil and turpentine 
varnish. It is used for fronts of houses or any place 
requiring hard putty. 


TOOLS AMD APPARATUS. 


13 


Soft putty. Mix 10 lbs. of whiting and 1 lb. of white 
lead with the necessary quantity of boiled linseed oil, 
adding to it } gill of the best olive oil. The latter pre¬ 
vents the white lead from hardening and preserves the 
putty in a state sufficiently soft to adhere at all times, 
and not, by getting hard and cracking off, suffering 
the wet to enter, as is often the case with ordinary 
hard putty. 

French putty. Boil linseed oil, 7 parts, with brown 
umber, 4 parts, for 2 hours; then add chalk, parts, 
and white lead, 11 parts, and thoroughly mix the 
whole. This putty is very durable and adheres well to 
wood, even though not previously painted. 

Facing putty. Mix whiting, white lead and a small 
quantity of litharge. Then add a small quantity of 
drying oil. This putty is especially good for stopping 
small flaws. 

Indestructible putty. Boil 4 lbs. of brown umber in 
7 lbs. of linseed oil for 2 hours; stir in 2 ozs. of wax ; 
take from the fire, and mix 5£ lbs. of chalk and 11 lbs. 
of white lead, and incorporate thoroughly. 

Lime putty for wood. Rye flour 10 parts, slacked 
lime 5, linseed oil varnish 5, umber a sufficient quan¬ 
tity to color. 

Wood and glue putty. Dissolve glue in water, and 
add as much very fine saw-dust as may be required. 

Putty for floors. Litharge 1 part, plaster of Paris 2, 
glue 1, water 8, cement 4, saw-dust 2, casein 5, water 
30, ammonia 3, burned lime 3. 

To soften hard putty. Common putty becomes ex¬ 
ceedingly hard with age, which renders the removal 
of glass from sashes very difficult. The putty may, 
however, be softened by using a paste of caustic potash, 
prepared by mixing the caustic potash with equal 


14 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

parts of freshly burned lime, which has previously 
been sprinkled with water, so as to cause it to fall into 
a powder. This is then mixed with water to a paste, 
and is spread on the putty to be softened. In order to 
prevent the paste from drying too quickly, it is well 
to mix it with less water, adding some soft soap in¬ 
stead. 

Another process is as follows: Take 1 lb. of pearl-ash 
and 3 lbs. of quicklime. Slack the lime in water, then 
add the pearl-ash and make the whole the consistency 
of paint. Apply it to both sides of the glass and let it 
remain twelve hours, when the putty will be suffi¬ 
ciently softened to allow of the glass being removed 
with ease. 

Putty may also be softened so that it can be cut out 
quit eeasily with a knife by rubbing soft soap on it 
pretty thick and allowing to stand 12 hours or more. 

PIGMENTS. 

The general qualities of good pigments, technically 
called colors, are: 1. Beauty of color, which includes 
pureness, brightness and depth; 2. Body; 3. Trans¬ 
parency or opacity; 4. Working well; 5. Keeping 
their place; 6. Drying well; and 7. Durability. 
However, but few pigments possess all these qualities 
in equal perfection. 

Body in opaque and white pigments is the quality 
of covering and hiding a ground well, but in trans¬ 
parent pigments it signifies richness of color or tinting 
power. Working well depends much on sufficient 
grinding or fineness of texture. Keeping tlieir places 
and drying well belong chiefly to the vehicle or liquid 
with which the pigments are tempered, and prin¬ 
cipally the oil with which they are employed. 


PIGMENTS. 


15 


All substances are positively or negatively colored, 
whence the abundance of natural and artificial pig¬ 
ments and dyes with which the painter and colorist in 
every art are supplied, and the infinity of others that 
may be added to them. As, however, it is durability 
that gives value to the beauty and other qualities of 
colors or pigments, and those of nature being for the 
most part adapted to temporary or transient purposes, 
few only are suited to the more lasting intentions of 
art, and hence a judicious selection is essential to the 
practice and purposes of artists. 

In mixing colors the painter should avoid using a 
greater number of pigments than necessary to afford 
the tints required, as such mixtures are usually fouler 
than the colors used and their drying and other quali¬ 
ties are commonly injured thereby. Nor is it advis¬ 
able to purchase ready-made compositions and tints 
that he can produce better by mixture, for this is to 
submit his own skill and knowledge to the inferior 
skill and to the gain of others: yet it shall by no 
means be said that the painter should lose his time in 
the manufacturing of original pigments, which he can 
obtain in better quality in the shops. 

White Pigments. 

The most important group of painters colors are the 
white pigments. White is the basis of nearly all 
opaque painting designed for the laying and covering 
of grounds, whether they be of wood-work, metal, 
stone, plaster, or other substances. It should be as 
pure and neutral in color as possible, for the better 
mixing and compounding with other colors without 
changing their hues, while it renders them of lighter 
shades, and of the tints required; it also gives solid 


16 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

body to all colors. It is the most advancing color; 
that is, it comes forward and catches the eye before all 
other colors, and it assists in giving this quality to 
other colors, with which it may be mixed, by render¬ 
ing their tints lighter and more vivid. Hence, it ap¬ 
pears to throw other colors back which are placed, near 
it, and it powerfully contrasts dark colors, and black 
most so of all. This term color is, however, equivocal 
when attributed to the neutrals , white, black and 
gray, yet the artist is bound to regard them as colors; 
and in philosophic strictness they are such latently, 
compounded and compensated, for a thing cannot but 
be that of which it is composed, and the neutrals are 
composed of and comprehend all colors. 

White is the nearest among colors in relation to yel¬ 
low, and is in itself a pleasing and cheerful color, 
which takes every tint, hue and shade, and harmonizes 
with all other colors, and is the contrast of black, 
added to which it gives solidity in mixture, and a 
small quantity of black added to white preserves it 
from its tendency to turn yellow. 

The most important of the white pigments is 
White lead. White lead was known to the ancients. 
Dioscorides, writing in the fourth century before 
Christ, states that it was manufactured by exposing 
lead to the vapors of vinegar, scraping off the crust 
formed and treating the latter with water, whereby 
the product, called psimuthion , was deposited. Theo¬ 
phrastus, Pliny and Vitruvius also describe its manu¬ 
facture from lead and vinegar. It was designated by 
several names, such as cerusa, cerussa, cerosa. It was 
employed in therapeutics like litharge ; for instance, a 
solution of it in acetic acid yielding, according to 
Galen, an eye water. Mixed with gypsum and liquid 


PIGMENTS. 


17 


pitch it was employed as a paint for iron. It was also 
used, either by itself or colored red with various sub¬ 
stances (generally of a vegetable nature), as a face 
powder or cosmetic. White lead was for a long time 
considered an acetate of lead, its true composition be¬ 
ing established, in 1774, by Bergmann. For many 
years its manufacture was exclusively carried on by 
the Venetians and Dutch, but was gradually intro¬ 
duced into other countries, partially modified pro¬ 
cesses being in some instances employed. 

Constitution of white lead and theory of its forma¬ 
tion. To obtain, in manufacturing white lead, a prep¬ 
aration of good covering power, it must be endeavored, 
according to Hochstetter, to form a combination of 
2PbC0 3 -j-PbH 2 0 2 , or 


PbOTT 

2C0 3 Pb.Pb(0H) 2 =C0 3 < p , 

co 3 < 1 b 

Pb.OH, 


with 86.32 PbO, 11.36 C0 2 and 2.32 H 2 0; lienee a basic 
salt. The neutral salt, PbC0 3 , with 83.46 PbO and 
16.54 C0 2 , gives a greater yield by weight, but on 
account of its crystalline constitution far less favorable 
results as regards the consumption of oil and covering 
power, and also renders the product hard. Therefore, 
the principal methods of manufacturing white lead are 
based upon the decomposition of tribasic acetate of 
lead, by the introduction of a sufficient quantity of car¬ 
bonic acid, that a bibasic carbonate of lead and neutral 
acetate of lead are formed. 

As long as basic acetate of lead in excess is present, 
i. e., as long as the solution shows an alkaline reaction 
with turmeric, neutral carbonate of lead cannot exist, 
because the former constantly converts the latter into 
2 


18 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

basic salt. If more carbonic acid is introduced, the 
neutral acetate of lead is also decomposed to carbonate 
and free acetic acid; the latter being much diluted 
does not act upon the carbonate, but in a concentrated 
state decomposes it. The white lead first precipitated 
from solutions of basic acetate of lead by carbonic acid 
is richer in hydrate than that precipitated later on, 
and covers better, so that by a less complete precipita¬ 
tion the quality of the product is enhanced. Generally 
speaking, the quality of white lead improves within 
certain limits with the content of lead hydroxide, as 
well as with that of lead, and decreases with the con¬ 
tent of carbonate of lead. It being difficult to main¬ 
tain an accurate limit, the composition of the ordinary 
varieties of white lead varies more or less from the 
normal composition given above by the admixture of 
varying quantities of neutral carbonate of lead, as has 
been shown by Hochstetter, while Mulder infers from 
various analyses that the commercial product is always 
a constant combination corresponding to one of the 
following formulae: 

2PbC0 3 -f PbH 2 0 2 with 86.27 PbO 

5PbC0 3 +2PbH 2 0 2 “ 85.86 “ 

3PbC0 3 +PbH 2 0 2 “ 85.45 “ 

4PbC0 3 +PbPI 2 0 2 “ 85.00 “ 

According to Wigner and Harland, white lead is not 
a basic carbonate, but a mixture of neutral carbonate 
and lead hydroxide, covering best in the proportion 
of 3:1 molecules. Lead hydroxide alone with oil does 
not give a covering paint, and carbonate of lead alone 
with oil yields only an incompletely covering emul¬ 
sion. 

Manufacture of white lead. White lead is manu- 


PIGMENTS. 


19 


factured by a variety of methods, the principal ones of 
which will be briefly described. 

Dutch method or stack method . This is the oldest 
method known, its name being derived from the sup¬ 
position that it was invented in Holland. It is used in 
all parts of the world for the manufacture of white 
lead, and there is but little variation in the details of 
the process and in the construction of the plant used 
in different countries. 

The plant used in the Hutch or stack process consists 
of a shed of brick-work about 16 feet long by 13 feet 
wide and 20 feet high. For convenience sake parts of 
the structure are in some places built below the level 
of the ground. A number of earthen pots, resembling 
in shape crucibles, and generally 8 inches high by 4 
"inches in diameter, are provided. The pots are glazed 
inside to half their height, but not glazed outside. In 
the interior they are provided with a ledge or shelf. 
Borne vinegar (about £ pint) is brought into each pot, 
and upon the ledge or shelf is placed a coil of thin 
sheet lead so that it does not project over the edge of 
the pot nor come in contact with the vinegar. The 
stack is built up as follows: A layer of horse-dung 
which has been previously used is placed upon the 
floor of the shed, and a layer of fresh horse-dung is 
spread along the walls. The space left free is then 
filled with pots prepared as above described. In the 
centre of the stack and in the comers are placed a few 
larger pots, which are almost entirely filled with vine¬ 
gar, but contain no lead. Each layer generally holds 
1000 to 1200 pots. Over the coil of lead resting upon 
the shelf of the pot is placed a layer of three or four 
lead plates, so that the uppermost forms the lid of the 
pot. The entire layer is then covered with stout 


20 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

planks. On the top of the planks is placed another 
layer of fresh horse-dung, then a layer of pots, then a 
layer of lead plates, then another layer of boards, and 
so on until the stack is completely built up. The 
doorway through which the filling is done is closed as 
the work progresses by boarding, but a small space is 
left at the top through which the progress of the oper¬ 
ation can be observed, and fresh additions of material 
made as required, to allow for sinking of the horse- 
dung, etc. Each stack consists generally of seven, 
though sometimes also of ten rows of pots. In con¬ 
structing the stack the separate rows of pots are con¬ 
nected by leaving spaces between the planks so that 
the air necessary for oxidation can circulate through 
the stack. A large white lead works, of course, re¬ 
quires a number of sheds with the necessary pots so as 
to keep the workmen fully occupied. 

After four to six weeks the lead is converted into 
white lead. As a rule, 10 to 15 per cent, of the lead is 
not corroded ; 100 volumes of lead yield 112 of white 
lead. 

Although the health of the workmen does not seem 
to suffer from the exhalations of the great quantities 
of horse-dung, the method adopted in England of using 
spent tan instead is much more agreeable; and although 
in its operations it is slower than with horse-dung, 
the product is more regular in composition and not 
liable to be darkened by the evolution of sulphuretted 
hydrogen from the decomposing dung. The arrange¬ 
ment of the stacks remains the same. Sometimes a 
combination of the dung and tan process is employed, 
the two lowest layers receiving dung and the upper 
layers tan. The process is somewhat slower than with 
dung alone, but more white lead is produced. Lead 


PIGMENTS. 


21 


once subjected to corrosion is more rapidly converted 
into white lead than fresh lead, especially after expo¬ 
sure for some time to the air. 

A great fault of the Dutch process is the irregular 
manner in which it proceeds, it being impossible to 
regulate the fermentation. The temperature in the 
interior of the stack is never uniform, it being in the 
commencement of the operation as high as 194° and 
even 212° F., which causes the rapid evaporation of the 
vinegar, which then either volatilizes or condenses on 
the exterior cold places without acting upon the lead. 
However, this can only happen in the commencement 
of the operation, for when the acetic acid is once fixed 
on lead oxide, volatilization of it can no longer take 
place, but even then an uneven temperature is in¬ 
jurious, on account of its being frequently very high in 
the centre of the stack and comparatively low on the 
walls, whereby oxidation in that? portion of the stack 
is retarded. The best results are attained when there 
is a proper degree of circulation of air and a tempera¬ 
ture of from 100° to 129° F. is sustained. With too low 
a temperature the lead is incompletely corroded, and 
with too high a temperature the white lead readily ac¬ 
quires a yellow color. With an uneven temperature 
the vinegar vapors pass Irom the warmer to the colder 
portions of the stack, in consequence of which the pots 
located there become tilled with vinegar by the con¬ 
densation of the vapors, and the lead in the pots being 
submerged in vinegar is not converted into white lead. 

When the time necessary for the conversion of the 
lead into white lead has elapsed, the stack is dis¬ 
mantled. As the boards are removed it is found that 
the lead which has been corroded still retains its orig¬ 
inal form. The plates and coils are taken from the 


22 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


pots and carried in small boxes to the grinding rooms. 
The method of treating the white lead varies in differ¬ 
ent works, but the following may be taken as a good 
example of the usual manner of working : The cor¬ 
roded lead is first passed through a pair of rolls ; these 
break up the masses, the white lead crumbling to pow¬ 
der while the unchanged lead is flattened out into thin 
sheets. The crushed materials are then passed through 
a sieve to separate the white lead from unchanged lead. 
The latter is sent to the melting pot, where it is melted 
and recast for use in building another stack. The 
white lead is brought into tanks full of water, where 
it is thoroughly agitated and the small traces of acetate 
of lead which the corroded lead contains washed out 
of it. While still wet the white lead is ground as fine 
as possible under edge runners or between rollers and 
then dried, when it is ready for sale. As the grinding 
must be thorough, the lead is passed through several 
sets of grinding mills. Grinding white lead is a very 
unhealthy occupation on account of the fine dust, 
which flies about the room in which it is done and is 
breathed by the workmen, who sooner or later suffer 
from lead poisoning. Much of this danger may be 
avoided by grinding the lead in a wet condition only, 
and by drinking water acidulated with sulphuric acid, 
whereby the lead absorbed into the system is converted 
into harmless sulphate of lead. 

In the white lead works of Walkers, Parker & Co., 
in the North of England, lead buckles or gratings 
are used instead of thin plates, and spent tan instead 
of dung. The lead gratings are not placed in pots, but 
several of them (5 or 6) are laid, one on top of the other, 
over shallow eartnen dishes containing vinegar. Each 
of the gratings weighs about 8 lbs. and hence they are 


PIGMENTS. 


23 


much heavier than the thin coils used in the ordinary 
Dutch process. However, experience has shown that 
the gratings are just as readily converted into white 
lead. When pots are used a six-pointed star of lead is 
placed upon the shelf over the vinegar and over it a lead 
buckle or grating rolled together. The vinegar is pre¬ 
pared in the establishment by the distillation of wood, 
and diluted so that it shows only 1° with the acetometer. 
The resulting white lead is converted into a fine paste 
by the addition of water, which prevents dust. The 
white lead is ground with the constant access of water 
by passing it successively through three mills, when it 
is allowed to settle. The clear water is then pumped 
off, and the white lead dried in shallow earthenware 
vessels. When dry it is rubbed with 8 to 10 per cent, of 
oil in troughs provided with stirring shafts, and ground 
fine between stones. 

German or Chamber Method. 

A chamber of brickwork is built of any convenient 
size and with few openings, the usual ones being a 
door to enter into the chamber for the purpose of fill¬ 
ing it, and an opening in the roof for ventilation. 
Sometimes a window or two for the purpose of obser¬ 
vation is added. The chamber has a number of 
shelves on which are placed sheets or gratings of lead. 
When all the lead is placed upon the shelves and the 
openings of the chamber have been carefully closed, 
currents of aqueous vapor, air, carbonic acid and acetic 
acid are admitted into the chamber. After a period 
varying from four to five weeks, the white lead will 
have been formed. It is collected and treated as in the 
Dutch process. 

Various alterations in the details of this method 


24 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

have from time to time been made. Burton, for in¬ 
stance, places the lead in coils on the shelves of the 
chamber and passes the current of steam through per¬ 
forated pipes, thereby converting the lead into oxide. 
When a sufficient amount of this has been formed, the 
current of steam is stopped and a current of acetic acid 
vapor sent in, which converts the oxide into the basic 
acetate. When this action is finished the acetic acid 
current is stopped and carbonic acid gas sent in, which 
acts on the basic acetate and changes it into basic car¬ 
bonate or white lead. These currents of steam, acetic 
acid vapor and carbonic acid gas, are sent in succes¬ 
sively until all the lead is converted into white lead. 
The currents are then stopped and the white lead is 
collected and finished in the usual way. 

The chamber used in the Hatfield process is built 
with a double wall and the bottom is hopper-shaped. 
The lead is in the form of gratings and placed in trays 
on shelves in the chamber. Water and acetic acid in 
the form of spray are sent into the chamber, the tem¬ 
perature of the latter being at the same time main¬ 
tained at a suitable point by means of steam pipes. 
The action of the water and acid is to convert the lead 
into basic acetate of lead. When this has been properly 
formed the water and acetic acid spray is stopped, and 
a current of carbonic acid gas sent in to form white 
lead. 

The principal faults of the German or chamber pro¬ 
cess are, according to Weise, as follows : 

1. With an excess of carbonic acid gas hard white 
leads with slight covering power are formed, in conse¬ 
quence of too large a content of carbonate of lead and 
want of lead hydroxide, as shown by the following 
analyses: 



PIGMENTS. 



25 


a 

b 

c 

d 

e 

Lead monoxide. 

86.80 

86.24 

86.03 

84.69 

83.47 

Carbonic acid. . 

11.16 

11.68 

12.28 

14.10 

16.15 

Water. 

2.00 

1.81 

1.68 

0.93 

0.25 


a. Lead of the best quality ; good both in color and 
body. b. Second quality, not so good as a , but still 
very serviceable as a pigment, c. Third quality, just 
usable as a pigment, cl. Not usable except for very 
ordinary purposes, e. Not usable at all; it contains 
too much carbonate, and is sent to the smelting fur¬ 
nace. 

2. The formation of colorations; a gray coloration 
in consequence of the presence of too much carbonate 
of lead or an admixture of very finely divided metallic 
lead ; a yellowish or reddish coloration due to a con¬ 
tent of lead oxide not fixed to carbonic acid or water, 
which is formed in consequence of a want of acetic 
acid or aqueous vapor in the chamber. An intensely 
colored product of this kind contained 93.70 per cent, 
lead monoxide, 5.31 carbonic acid, and 0.90 water; 
hence 55.04 per cent, lead monoxide free from water. 

French method or ivet precipitation process. In 
this process the lead is used in the form of a solution 
and the precipitation is effected by means of a current 
of carbonic acid gas. 

ThenarcVs process. Thenard, in 1801, proposed the 
utilization of the behavior of a solution of basic acetate 
of lead towards carbonic acid for the preparation of 
white lead. The process was later on worked on a 
large scale by Hoard at Clichy, in consequence ot 
which it became known as the Clichy or French pro¬ 
cess. The various operations consist in bringing lith¬ 
arge into dilute vinegar until the fluid shows 17° or 18° 
B. It then contains for every 2 molecules acetic acid 


26 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

3 molecules lead oxide. This basic acetate of lead is 
decomposed by carbonic acid gas obtained by the com¬ 
bustion of charcoal, coke, or from lime kilns or other 
sources rich in carbonic acid, whereby carbonate of 
lead is separated, while neutral acetate of lead remains 
in solution. The neutral solution is separated from 
the precipitate and again used for the solution of lead 
oxide. Hence the same quantity of vinegar is con¬ 
stantly reemployed, there being only the very slight 
loss of the acetic acid which remains adhering to the 
washed precipitate. 

The product obtained by this process is fairly good, 
but liable to vary in composition from time to time ac¬ 
cording to the strength of the solution of basic acetate 
ot lead and to the basicity or proportion of lead oxide 
the lead acetate has dissolved. 

Ozoufs method as employed at St. Denis is an im¬ 
provement of Thenard’s process in so far that pure 
carbonic acid gas is used for pecipitation, the result¬ 
ing product being similar to that obtained by the 
Dutch process. The preparation of pure carbonic acid 
gas is effected in a special apparatus, and is based upon 
the gas mixed with other gases being absorbed by a 
solution of sodium carbonate and again liberated by 
heating the latter. 

Preparation of white lead from litharge. This pro¬ 
cess, originally proposed by Benson and Gossage, con¬ 
sists in stirring dry litharge with a one per cent, solu¬ 
tion of acetate of lead to a moist powder, which is 
treated with carbonic acid. The litharge is kept in 
constant motion upon a metal-plate by a fluted roll 
passing over it, so that the basic acetate of lead formed 
constantly presents fresh surfaces to the carbonic acid. 
The carbonic acid is obtained by the combustion of 


PIGMENTS. 


27 


coke. When all the lead oxide is converted into 
white lead, the latter is ground, elutriated, dried and 
brought into commerce either itself or ground with 
oil. 

The use of ordinary litharge for the preparation of 
white lead has the disadvantage that it always con¬ 
tains more or less iron and copper, the former impart¬ 
ing a yellowish color to the white lead, and the latter 
causing the coating of paint to turn yellow on expos¬ 
ure to the air. For this reason only litharge freed 
from copper by treatment with ammonia should be 
used. Woellner recommends the effecting of the treat¬ 
ment of the litharge in revolving cylinders and adding 
at the same time an equal volume of granulated lead 
to the litharge. 

Besides the processes above described others have 
from time to time been proposed or patented, a few of 
which may be mentioned. 

Pattimon 1 s white lead is made by treating chloride 
of lead with lime, when it forms the basic chloride, a 
white insoluble body, having fair covering power, but 
wanting in uniformity of composition. 

Martin prepares carbonate of lead so that it shall 
contain a slight excess of carbonic acid. Hydroxide 
of lead is prepared by thoroughly agitating granulated 
lead with water under access of air. The hydroxide is 
mixed with carbonate of lead in the proportion of 8 lbs. 
of the former to 1 ton of the latter, the mixture being 
made by grinding with water into a paste. 

Millner stirs together finely ground lead oxide with 
the chlorides of potassium, sodium and ammonium, 
whereby lead oxychloride is formed and converts the 
latter into a basic carbonate of great covering power by 
the introduction of carbonic acid. 


28 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Sublimed white lead. This product is the invention 
of G. T. Lewis, and was first patented in 1879. About 
1870 a vein of ore containing both lead and zinc, being 
a mixture of galena and blende, was discovered in the 
United States. This was smelted for lead which, on 
account of its being different in properties from ordi¬ 
nary lead, was distinguished as “ Bartlett lead.” The 
presence of zinc in lead ores being very detrimental, 
the process of making white lead was devised to utilize 
this lead-zinc ore. 

The ore is ground, roasted, heated with coal in a 
similar manner to zinc-white from ores, and the vola¬ 
tilized metal is oxidized. A mixture is obtained 
which consists essentially of zinc oxide and lead sul¬ 
phate. 

Sublimed white lead is a powder of a fine white 
color, though sometimes it has a gray tint; the white 
has a rather bluish hue. It is heavy, a cubic foot of it 
weighing about 200 lbs. It is quite insoluble in water, 
is partially soluble in dilute nitric acid, which dissolves 
out the zinc oxide, lead oxide, or lead carbonate the 
pigment may contain. As a rule it is completely sol¬ 
uble in boiling hydrochloric acid, although some sam¬ 
ples contain a little barytes which remains behind as 
an insoluble residue on treatment with the acid. 

Freeman's non-poisonous white lead. The base of 
this white lead is the sulphate made from metallic 
lead by precipitation. It also contains zinc oxide, 
barytes, and, in the earlier makes, a little magnesia, all 
the ingredients being mixed together by a process of 
grinding under edge runners. The non-poisonous 
white lead is a very good pigment, is more permanent 
under exposure to atmospheric influences than ordi¬ 
nary white lead, and is equal to the latter in body or 


PIGMENTS. 


29 


covering power and in freedom of working. It is 
rather heavier than white lead, weighing about 180 to 
190 lbs. to the cubic foot. 

Properties of white lead. The pure product dis¬ 
solves completely in dilute nitric acid, as well as in 
potash and in soda lye. When exposed to sulphur¬ 
etted hydrogen or moistened with ammonium hydro¬ 
sulphide it turns brown or black, whereby it is distin¬ 
guished from zinc-white. When heated with the 
access of air it yields its carbonic acid, and at 572° F. 
passes into lead oxide and finally into minium. When 
digested under pressure with carbonated water for some 
time, the water may contain 0.22 drachm of lead per 
quart. The difference in covering power is due to the 
form, size, density and composition of the smallest par¬ 
ticles. The white lead obtained by the French or pre¬ 
cipitation process is looser, of a coarser grain, and pos¬ 
sesses less covering power than the product obtained 
by the Dutch or German process, which is denser, of a 
finer grain, and never crystalline, and, though of a 
greater specific gravity, requires less oil. 

When exposed to light and air, white lead is fairly 
permanent and will resist exposure to normal condi¬ 
tions for a great length of time; on the other hand, 
when exposed to the fumes of sulphuretted hydrogen 
and other sulphurous gases, white lead turns brown or 
black through the formation of the black sulphide of 
lead. The production of this body is more likely to 
occur in large towns, where great quantities of gas are 
used for lighting and other purposes, which usually 
contains some sulphuretted hydrogen or other sulphur 
compounds. 

White lead can be mixed with all pigments except 
those which, like cadmium yellow, ultramarine or 


30 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

King’s yellow, contain sulphur ; such pigments sooner 
or later causing the formation of the black sulphide, 
and thus bringing about the discoloration of the pig¬ 
ment or paint. 

In commerce white lead is found in two forms, viz. 
as a heavy white powder, having a specific gravity of 
about 6.47 and weighing about 180 lbs. to the cubic 
foot, or as a paste containing about 8 per cent, of lin¬ 
seed oil. To make the latter, the dry white lead is first 
mixed in a mixing mill with about 8 to 9 per cent, of 
its weight of raw linseed oil; it is then run through a 
grinding mill several times to ensure a thorough 
mixture of the oil and white lead. This form is much 
liked by painters, it being more readily miscible with 
oil and turpentine to make it into paint. 

In order to obtain a cheaper product, white lead is 
frequently mixed with barytes (heavy spar) which is 
distinguished by its white color and great specific grav¬ 
ity. The mixture is often effected in fixed proportions 
and for certain varieties of white lead, which are 
known by special names or numbers, remains un¬ 
changed. Thus Venetian ivJdte consists of equal parts 
white lead and barytes, Hamburg white of 2 parts 
barytes and 1 part white lead ; Dutch white with up to 
75 per cent, barytes. White lead is also distinguished 
as No. 1, genuine, No. 2 with | barytes, No. 3 with §, 
No. 4 with | and No. 5 with f. The so-called Kremnitz 
white is a pure white lead. It is produced by placing 
trays containing a paste made of litharge and either 
acetic acid or lead acetate upon shelves in a chamber 
built of brick or wood. When the chamber is filled 
carbonic acid gas is sent into it and is absorbed by the 
lead oxide present in the paste, the absorption of the 
gas being facilitated by raking over the paste from 


PIGMENTS. 


31 


time to time. The mass originally has a yellowish 
gray color, but as the operation progresses it gradually 
changes into white. When all traces of yellow have 
disappeared, the operation is stopped, and the white 
lead is first washed with water, then ground and 
dried. It is brought into commerce in pieces or small 
cubes, which in consequence of a content of acetate of 
lead are very hard, difficult to comminute and they 
break with a conclioidal fracture. 

Testing white lead. The best white lead contains 1 
to 3 per cent, of water, traces of chloride, sulphate and 
sulphide of lead, metallic lead, and sometimes acetate 
of lead is intentionally added to make the product 
harder. White lead may be tested by painting-tests, 
or it may be examined chemically. For the former 
Chandler recommends to intimately mix 100 parts of 
white lead rubbed with oil with 1 part of best lamp¬ 
black and a little boiled linseed oil, and to apply the 
mixture with a steel spatula to a glass plate, whereby 
the purity of the white lead may be recognized from 
the color of the coat. 

Pure white lead of 5.5 to (5.4 specific gravity readily 
fuses upon coal and rapidly yields, without odor of 
sulphuric acid (sulphate of lead) a metallic button and 
yellow film. The presence of earthy combinations 
renders fusing more difficult, and, as a rule, only small 
metallic grains result with soda. 

The purity of white lead is ascertained by dissolving 
a sample of it in pure dilute nitric acid (1 acid, 2 
water). On adding dilute sulphuric acid to the solu¬ 
tion, after diluting it with water and filtering off the 
precipitate of lead sulphate thus obtained, no further 
precipitate should be formed on successively adding 
ammonia, ammonium sulphide and ammonium oxa¬ 
late to the filtrate. 


32 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

A white precipitate with ammonium sulphide would 
indicate the presence of zinc white, which is rarely 
found with white lead ; a white precipitate with am¬ 
monium oxalate would indicate the presence of whit¬ 
ing. 

The insoluble residue, if any, will consist most prob¬ 
ably of barytes, as other adulterants are rarely used. 
However any lead sulphate, china-clay, gypsum or 
strontium sulphate which may be used would also be 
left as an insoluble residue on treating white lead with 
dilute nitric acid. To distinguish these bodies, boil the 
residue in hydrochloric acid and allow the solution to 
cool ; if crystals of lead chloride separate out and the 
solution gives a white precipitate with barium chlo¬ 
ride, then lead sulphate is present. 

The hydrochloric acid solution should be diluted 
with water and sulphuretted hydrogen passed through 
it. The black precipitate of lead sulphide which may 
be obtained can be disregarded. Filter it off and boil 
the filtrate for some time to concentrate it and to drive 
off the sulphuretted hydrogen it contains. Then am¬ 
monia is added, when a white precipitate of alumina 
may be obtained which indicates the presence of china 
clay. Filter this off, and add to the filtrate am¬ 
monium carbonate, which will precipitate any cal¬ 
cium that may have been added in the form of gypsum 
or whiting. 

A little of the insoluble residue from the hydro¬ 
chloric acid solution should be held on a piece of plati¬ 
num wire in the lower part of a Bunsen flame, when, 
if it contains barytes, the flame will be colored green ; if 
strontium sulphate is present, a crimson flame will be 
obtained. This test is not always easy to carry out, 
but with a little care the colored flames may be ob- 


PIGMENTS. 


33 


tained and they are an excellent proof of the presence 
of the pigments named. 

White lead may also be tested with the blow-pipe , 
the operation being conducted as follows: Take a 
piece of charcoal about 1^ inches broad and J inch thick. 
Hold it flat and scoop out of one end of it a cup-like 
cavity, about as large in diameter as a dime. Place in 
this depression a piece of the white lead about the 
size of a pea. Now, take a blow-pipe, and direct a 
flame upon it from a gas jet. In order to produce suc¬ 
cessful results, it should be borne in mind that an in¬ 
tense heat is required, which can only be obtained by 
directing the flame steadily on the same spot. To in¬ 
sure the flame being directed steadily, it is well to sup¬ 
port the blow-pipe on something, such as part of the 
gas bracket, and also to support the charcoal, holding 
it in the left hand, and inclining it somewhat to re¬ 
ceive the flame. Those who are not used to handling 
blow-pipes have considerable difficulty in keeping up 
a continuous blow. The only way in which success 
can be obtained is to inflate the cheeks, and to breathe 
through the nostrils ; do not obtain the supply of air 
from the lungs, but from the cheeks. After a little 
practice it will be found one can blow steadily for a 
great length of time. The tip of the blow pipe must 
always be placed in the blue part of the flame, and the 
white lead to be tested must be held in the point of 
the blue “blow-pipe flame.” Care must be taken not 
to hold the white lead further away from the blow¬ 
pipe than this point, or the operation will be very 
greatly prolonged. If the white lead to be tested is 
pure and a sufficient heat is obtained, it will in a few 
minutes be reduced to a small, pea-like leaden globule, 
having an appearance not unlike quicksilver. If, 
3 


34 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

however, it is adulterated, it will leave, as a deposit, a 
cinder-like substance varying in color according to the 
adulteration. As little as 5 per cent, of adulteration 
can be detected in this manner. 

Zinc white. This pigment, also called Chinese white , 
consists entirely of the oxide of the metal zinc and has 
the composition : Zinc (Zn) 80.25 per cent, oxygen (O) 
19.75 per cent. It is prepared from metallic zinc by 
heating in the air, or directly from the ores. The zinc 
is heated in fire-clay retorts resembling those used in 
the manufacture of illuminating gas. They are pro¬ 
vided with an aperture for the introduction of the 
charge and the escape of the zinc vapors. The vapor¬ 
izing plant consists of a furnace of the reverberatory 
type, in which are placed a number of retorts. The 
furnaces are made double, back to back, so as to ac¬ 
commodate two sets of retorts. When the retorts have 
been raised to a white heat, the ingots of zinc are 
thrown in. The metal is converted into vapors which 
escape through the aperture in the retorts, and directly 
on escaping from the latter meet a current of air heated 
to 572° F. by which the zinc is burned and converted 
into zinc oxide. The loose zinc oxide thus formed is 
carried by the current of air into chambers in which 
it gradually deposits. The product thus obtained is 
of a white color, and without previous grinding or 
washing can immediately be combined with oil. 

In the preparation of zinc white directly from the 
ores, the roasted ore is brought to a red heat upon the 
grate of a furnace previously charged with fuel (coke 
or anthracite), and a current of air is then conveyed 
under the grate. When the zinc commences to evap¬ 
orate, the escaping vapors are converted into zinc white 
by being conducted to the precipitating chambers 


PIGMENTS. 


35 


through a system of pipes, in which they are strongly 
heated with the access of air. Zinc oxide may also 
be obtained by treating zinc with superheated aqueous 
vapors (with the development of hydrogen.) Zinc 
white is more costly than white lead. It has the ad¬ 
vantage over the latter that it remains unchanged by 
exposure to air and light, and chiefly that sulphur or 
sulphur gases have no visible action on it, the sul¬ 
phide formed being white like the oxide. It is a 
rather bulky, fine white powder of a slightly bluish 
hue, and has a specific gravity of 5.6. It is quite inso¬ 
luble in water, oii, alcohol and turpentine. It dis¬ 
solves in dilute sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, ace¬ 
tic acid and many other acids, without effervescence, 
giving colorless solutions. It is also soluble in am¬ 
monia and alkaline solutions. It can be mixed with 
all other pigments without undergoing any change or 
changing the other pigment. 

Tlie purity of zinc white in oil may be tested by 
burning out the oil by means of a blast lamp, on an 
iron spoon or ladle. Take of the zinc white a piece 
about the size of a pea, place it in the centre of the 
spoon and direct the blast on it until it is burned 
white and perfectly dry. Crush the white cinder 
which is left to a tine powder and drop this into a 
glass of diluted sulphuric acid (1 acid to 10 water). If 
the powder be fine and very little dropped in at a time, 
it will, if pure, dissolve completely before reaching the 
bottom and without effervescence. If there be any 
effervescence it indicates the presence of whiting, 
which will precipitate as sulphate of lime, which is, 
however, sparingly soluble; barytes is insoluble, and 
a considerable adulteration of terra alba is not readily 
soluble ; clay is insoluble. 


SG 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

Zinc sulphide lias also been prepared as a pig¬ 
ment, Orr's white enamel or Charlton white and 
Griffith's patent zinc white being examples of it. The 
liability of sulphide of zinc white to evolve sulphur¬ 
etted hydrogen renders its use as a pigment dangerous, 
for there are several other colors upon which it would 
exert a deleterious action. However, Griffith’s patent 
zinc white is very largely used as a pigment. Its color 
is good and in body it is nearly, if not quite, equal to 
that of white lead. It is claimed that it does not be¬ 
come discolored by exposure to sulphuretted hydrogen, 
or to any other sulphur compounds. It resists expo¬ 
sure to all atmospheric agencies, and is very perma¬ 
nent. It mixes well with oil, working very freely 
under the brush. It mixes with all pigments, except¬ 
ing those containing lead or copper, without being 
changed by them or changing them in any way. 

Barytes or heavy spar is one of the most important 
white pigments. In composition it is the sulphate of 
the metal barium, and is obtained from both natural 
and artificial sources. In nature heavy spar occurs in 
the form of large crystalline masses, generally opaque, 
but sometimes transparent pieces are found. Its spe¬ 
cific gravity is 4.3 to 4.7 ; its hardness 3 to 3.5. 

The preparation of heavy spar as a pigment is ef¬ 
fected by grinding it to a powder, it being successively 
passed through several mills of special construction. 
From these mills the ground heavy spar is passed to 
settling tanks, which are usually constructed of stone. 
The heavy spar settles in a few hours, when the super¬ 
natant water is drawn off. The powder is then sub¬ 
jected to a bleaching process to free it from any yellow 
tint which, in almost all cases, is due to oxide of iron, 
from which heavy spar is rarely free. The wet pow- 


PIGMENTS. 


37 


der from the settling tanks is run into stone cisterns 
and heated up to nearly the boiling point by means of 
a steam-pipe fitted to the cistern. A quantity of hy¬ 
drochloric acid, about 1 cwt. to 1 ton of crude heavy 
spar, is then added. The acid extracts the oxide of 
iron, leaving the heavy spar quite white. After treat¬ 
ment with acid the heavy spar is allowed to settle, the 
acid liquor is next poured off’, and the heavy spar 
washed with water to remove all traces of acid. In 
some works the washed heavy spar is next subjected 
to a levigating process to obtain as fine a quality as pos¬ 
sible, the coarser qualities being sent back to the mills 
to be reground. The heavy spar is then dried, which 
is generally effected in two stages. From the settling 
tanks it is thrown on to the tops of drying flues, 
where it is allowed to remain until it becomes suffi¬ 
ciently dry to adhere together and is then cut up into 
large bricks which are transferred to the drying stoves, 
where they are allowed to remain until properly dry, 
several days being required for the process. When 
dry the bricks are removed from the stoves and ground 
up in the mills to a fine powder. 

Floated barytes is a fine quality, prepared by a pro¬ 
cess of levigation. In other respects, it does not differ 
from ordinary barytes. 

Permanent white or blanc fix is artificially prepared 
barium carbonate. It is obtained by preparing a cold 
solution of barium chloride of specific gravity 1.19 and 
gradually adding to it, in the cold, dilute sulphuric acid 
of 1.245 specific gravity until no further precipitate is 
formed. The barium sulphate is washed with cold 
water until the wash waters are entirely free from 
acid. 

Ordinary barytes or heavy spar is a fine and rather 


38 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

heavy white powder having a specific gravity of 4.5 to 
4.75. It is quite insoluble in all acids and alkalies, a 
property which distinguishes it from other white pig¬ 
ments. It is absolutely unalterable by an impure at¬ 
mosphere and as a pigment it is the most permanent 
white known. It mixes quite well with oil, of which 
it takes about 7 per cent, to grind into a stiff" paste. 
As an oil paint it is satisfactory in use, but for water 
colors it is not so good, seeming to lose some of its body 
on mixing with water. It is largely used for mixing 
with other pigments, especially with white lead, 
many commercial samples of the latter containing, as 
previously mentioned, 20 to 25 per cent, of barytes. 

The artificial barytes or permanent white may be 
distinguished from the natural by its much finer state 
of division, by its greater body and the purity of its 
whiteness. 

Barytes being cheap is not adulterated, but its al¬ 
most absolute insolubility in hydrochloric or nitric 
acid enables it to be at once distinguished from white 
lead or zinc white. 

Gypsum is a variety of calcium sulphate, and has the 
formula CaS0 4 . It is found in considerable abund¬ 
ance in many parts of the world. It is often asso¬ 
ciated with rock salt. When regularly crystallized it 
is termed selenite. The most useful form is that in 
large opaque and semi-opaque masses, which yields 
plaster of Paris , for when heated to between 300° and 
400° F., it loses its water, and if the mass be then 
powdered and again mixed with water, the powder 
recombines with it to form a mass of hydrated sul¬ 
phate of lime, the hardness of which nearly equals that 
of the original gypsum. 

For use as a pigment gypsum is ground up in the 


PIGMENTS. 


39 


same way as barytes, when it is obtained in the form 
of a soft white powder of a very good color known as 
terra alba, mineral ivhite, satin white, etc. 

Gypsum mixes well with either water or oil, and, 
being neutral in its properties, it can be mixed with 
all other pigments without affecting them or being af¬ 
fected by them. It is used very largely by paper 
stainers and makers of wall paper, who prefer it to 
barytes on account of its having more body when used 
for that class of work. It is used in finishing of cotton 
goods, in paper making, and for a variety of other pur¬ 
poses where a cheap white pigment is required. 

Whiting. This body is sold under a variety of 
names, such as Spanish white, Paris ivhite, English 
ivhite. Whiting is the carbonate of calcium CaC0 3 , 
purified by washing. It is prepared by grinding chalk 
under water to a very fine powder by passing it 
through several mills. The powder is run into tanks 
in which the coarser and heavier particles settle, while 
the finer chalk passes on to other tanks in which it 
settles. When the settling tanks are full, the chalk or 
whiting is dug out and dried. When partially dry it 
is cut into masses of a cubical shape and dried in the 
same manner as described under barytes. When dry 
it is ground. 

Paris white is a finer quality of whiting, but the 
grinding is more thoroughly done. Spanish ivhite is 
a name given to Paris white sold in a cylindrical 
form prepared by moulding the wet material into 
that form, and allowing it to dry in the open air. 

Whiting is a dull white powder of an amorphous 
character, and soft to the feel. Its specific gravity is 
about 2.5 to 2.8. It is quite insoluble in pure water, 
but is soluble in water containing carbonic acid gas in 


40 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

solution. As a pigment it is mostly used as a body color 
in distemper work, coloring walls, ceilings, etc., using 
water as a vehicle. It cannot be used as an oil color, 
for when mixed with oil, it loses its white color and 
turns a dirty gray. Mixed with about 18 per cent, of 
linseed oil, it forms the useful article known as putty. 

Kaolin or China clay is essentially a hydrated silicate 
of alumina. It is a natural product and only requires 
levigating and drying to prepare it for use as a pig¬ 
ment. It occurs in large deposits along with other 
constituents of undecomposed granite, the china clay 
usually forming from 15 to 20 per cent, of the whole 
deposit. 

Kaolin is a fine, white amorphous powder, having 
slight adhesive properties and adhering to the fingers 
when moist. Its specific gravity is about 2.2. The 
best qualities have a very soft unctuous feel and a pure 
white tint, while the common qualities are rather 
rougher, and of a more or less yellowish hue. 

As a pigment kaolin is quite permanent, resisting 
exposure to the atmosphere and to light for any 
length of time. It is, however, not much used as a 
pigment. In oil it loses its body and becomes more or 
less transparent. It can be used in water colors and in 
distemper work with good results, and is employed in 
paper-making and paper-staining. 

For distinguishing white pigments, Bolley gives the 
following characteristics:— 


PIGMENTS, 


41 


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42 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Red Pigments. 

Red pigments are derived from both inorganic and 
organic sources, and form a numerous and important 
class of painters’ colors. 

Vermilion. The mineral cinnabar or mercuric sul¬ 
phide occurs in many parts of Europe, especially in 
Spain. An abundance of it is found in China, and it 
is extensively worked in New Almaden, California. 
Its color in the mass varies from cochineal red and 
red-brown to lead-gray ; its powder is usually scarlet or 
red. Its hardness lies between that of gypsum and 
calcspar. It seldom contains even 1 part in 100 of im¬ 
purities, but consists in 100 parts of very nearly 14 parts 
by weight of sulphur combined with 80 of mercury, or 
1 atom of each element. The specific gravity of native 
vermilion is very nearly 9. 

The pigment vermilion may be made by simply 
grinding selected pieces of native cinnabar, but the 
product, as a rule, is not of sufficient brightness, and 
the pigment is, therefore, generally made artificially. 

All the methods of preparing vermilion artificially 
may be grouped under two divisions, viz., the dry 
way and the wet ivay. In the dry method, metallic 
mercury 42 parts and sulphur 8 parts are intimately 
mixed and agitated together in revolving drums until 
they are combined. The brownish-black powder thus 
obtained is then submitted to sublimation in vertical 
iron cylinders surmounted by heads which are con¬ 
nected with receivers. On sufficient heating, the mer¬ 
curic sulphide sublimes as cinnabar or vermilion, the 
best portion condensing in the retort-heads. The rest 
of the sublimed product, which has travelled further, 
contains free sulphur, and is of inferior color. The se¬ 
lected portions are next ground, moistened with water, 


PIGMENTS. 


43 


warmed with a little caustic potash solution or nitric 
acid, and then thoroughly washed with boiling water. 

In another dry process the mercury is gradually 
added to the proper proportion of melted sulphur in an 
iron basin. When the combination, which is accom¬ 
panied by a violent evolution of light and heat, is 
complete, the fused blackish mass is poured out, 
broken into fragments, heated until the excess of sul¬ 
phur is driven off, and then sublimed in the way 
already described. Some makers add to the crude sul¬ 
phide, previous to sublimation, 1 per cent, of anti¬ 
mony sulphide with the object of improving the color. 
The product is finally ground, digested with liver ot 
sulphur, and then washed with hydrochloric acid. 

There are numerous processes of preparing vermil 
ion by the wet way. One of the best of these consists 
in grinding, in the presence of water, 100 parts of mer¬ 
cury with 38 parts of flowers of sulphur until these ele¬ 
ments have united. The black product is then tritur¬ 
ated at 113° F. for many hours, with a solution of 25 
parts of caustic potash in 150 parts of water. When 
the product has attained its maximum of redness and 
beauty, it is thrown into water and thoroughly washed 
by decantation. 

In a second process mercury, sulphur and pentasul- 
pliide of potassium are boiled together for three or four 
hours and then the mixture is kept at a temperature of 
122° F. for several days. 

Vermilion is a very bright scarlet powder. It is the 
heaviest pigment known, its specific gravity being 8.2, 
which causes it to settle readily out of paints, etc., in 
which it is used and renders its application somewhat 
troublesome. It is very opaque and consequently has 
great covering power or body. It is quite insoluble in 


44 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

water, alkalies, and any single acid, but a mixture of 
nitric and hydrochloric acids dissolves it with the for¬ 
mation of a colorless solution of mercuric chloride. 

Vermilion prepared from the mineral or native cin¬ 
nabar is probably less liable to change than the artifi¬ 
cial products, whether obtained by the dry or wet 
way, but the “wet way” vermilions are certainly the 
most alterable. It may also be remarked that the 
more finely a vermilion is ground the less stable it is 
—at least as a water color. 

Commercial vermilion was formely adulterated 
with minium, ferric oxide and Derby red (basic chrom¬ 
ate of lead), while at present heavy spar or gypsum is 
frequently found as an admixture. On heating, these 
substances remain behind. Minium, the most com¬ 
mon adulterant of vermilion, may be established by 
the fact that vermilion adulterated with it turns 
brown on pouring nitric acid over it, and on treating 
it with hydrochloric acid evolves chlorine. 

Red lead or minium, Pb 3 0 4 is more orange red and 
less fiery than vermilion, but is much cheaper, and is 
highly esteemed for its covering power. It is obtained 
by heating lead oxide in what is called a “drossing 
oven,” a kind of reverberatory furnace, with the access 
of air. Only a slight heat should be employed, as other¬ 
wise the lead oxide would fuse and be converted into 
litharge, which cannot be oxidized to red lead. Dur¬ 
ing heating the mass is constantly stirred. 

Red lead is a heavy, bright red powder of an orange 
hue; its specific gravity being 8.53. Heat turns it to 
a dark brownish red, but the color is restored on cool¬ 
ing. Nitric acid and glacial acetic acid first dissolve 
out the monoxide, leaving the dark puce oxide; on 
further boiling this gradually dissolves, and colorless 


PIGMENTS. 


45 


solutions of the nitrate or acetate are formed. Hy¬ 
drochloric acid when heated with red lead decomposes 
it with the evolution of chlorine and the formation of 
the chloride, which settles as the solution cools in the 
form of transparent crystals, a very characteristic re¬ 
action of lead. Sulphuric acid boiled with red lead 
forms the sulphate, with the evolution of oxygen. 

Red lead is a combination of the two oxides of lead, 
the monoxide and the puce or dioxide ; the percentage 
composition being, lead monoxide, PbO, 64.5, lead 
dioxide, Pb0 2 , 35.5. 

Red lead is quite an important pigment now, and 
promises in the future to be more so. Architects, en¬ 
gineers and all others interested in structural iron 
works have almost unanimously decided that pure red 
lead is the proper first coat for iron. Red lead will 
saponify oil very quickly and therefore it should be 
freshly prepared for use. Many mix the dry red lead 
with oil as they use it, but this is not satisfactory, nor 
will the small hand-mill of the shop grind it suffi¬ 
ciently, though it is better to run it through such a 
mill than not to grind it at all. When a painter has a 
large job to do with red lead he should have it ground 
for him by the manufacturer in such quantity as he 
would use up in two or three days. It should be well 
ground in a thin paste, say about 20 lbs. of oil to every 
100 lbs. of red lead. 

Orange lead. This pigment is identical in composi¬ 
tion with red lead. It is obtained by roasting pure 
white lead with an oxidizing flame at a low red heal 
in a reverberatory furnace for 24 to 43 hours until the 
mass has acquired the desired red tint. It is lighter 
in weight and has a less fiery color than red lead. 

Iron reds. These are an interesting group, and iron 


46 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

probably gives as much paint material as any other 
element, even including lead. It must be remembered 
that all the ochres, umbers, siennas, metallic browns, 
etc., get their coloring from iron, and the aggregate of 
these will equal the lead colors. 

Ferric oxide, Fe0 3 , the red oxide of iron, is the basis 
of a very large number of red pigments which are sold 
under the names of rouge, light red, Indian red, red 
oxide, Venetian red, purple oxide, scarlet red, etc., 
which are all red pigments of varying shades of color. 
In the hydrated form, ferric oxide, as above men¬ 
tioned, also forms the coloring principle of the ochres, 
siennas and umbers. The red oxides are valued very 
highly as pigments on account of their generally fine 
color and their permanence. 

The pigments are prepared both from natural and 
artificial sources. The preparation from the natural 
oxide of iron is comparatively simple. The mineral is 
first ground so as to reduce the large masses to small 
pieces; then these are several times passed through a 
roller mill until they are fine enough, or they may be 
put through a horizontal stone mill fitted with a hop¬ 
per for levigating, and the ground pigment is levi¬ 
gated to free it as much as possible from grit, after 
which it is dried. 

As a rule the natural oxide reds are quite pure pro- 
. ducts. They are generally dark, and sold as 1 ndian red 
and red oxide. Indian red , according to its name, was 
first brought from Bengal and is a very rich hematite 
ore. It is an anomalous red, of a purple-russet hue, 
and of a good body. The pigment varies considerably 
in color, that which is the most rosy being esteemed 
the best and affording the purest tints. 

Artificial iron reds are obtained as by-products in 


PIGMENTS. 


47 


the manufacture of fuming sulphuric acid, in which 
the residues from glowing iron sulphates are subjected 
to a fresh heating operation with the addition of com¬ 
mon salt. In England and some parts of Germany 
iron red is produced by calcining iron sulphates ob¬ 
tained from pyrites waste in a muffle furnace. Ac¬ 
cording to the temperature employed the various 
shades from orange-red to brown and violet are ob¬ 
tained. The names for iron reds, as now used, are 
usually indicative of the shade of red: thus rouge 
colcotliar, scarlet red and Turkey red are bright reds, 
Venetian red is pale red; light red is rather darker, but 
is usually paler than those above enumerated; Indian 
red and red oxide are dark reds, while light and dark 
purple oxides are of a dull violet hue. 

Venetian red originally consisted of a native ferric 
oxide or red hematite. But of recent years the name 
appears to have been transferred to a particular qual¬ 
ity of artificial ferric oxide made by calcining green 
vitriol. When this salt is heated in a crucible the 
upper portion of the product, which has been less 
strongly heated than the lower, is of a brighter red 
than the remainder, and after washing and grinding 
is sold as Venetian red. 

Red oxide pigments form red powders of various 
shades from a pale red to a dark violet, the specific 
gravity of which varies from 2.6 to 3.1. They are 
quite insoluble in water, and more or less insoluble in 
acids. If the oxide has been made at a low tempera¬ 
ture, as for instance rouge, it will dissolve in strong 
hydrochloric acid; if it lias been made at a higher tem¬ 
perature, Indian red for example, it is not readily sol¬ 
uble in hydrochloric acid, and requires a mixture of 
that acid and nitric acid to effect its solution, while 


48 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

the purple oxides which have been prepared by cal¬ 
cining at a very high temperature are very insoluble 
bodies, and require to be treated with a mixture of sul¬ 
phuric, hydrochloric, and nitric acids before they will 
dissolve. 

As a pigment, red oxides are perfectly permanent 
under all conditions. They mix perfectly with all 
pigments without either affecting them in any way or 
being affected by them. They do not mix as Avell 
with oil as red lead, take about 10 per cent, of oil to 
grind into the usual stiff paste, and do not act as 
driers. 

Antimony vermilion or antimony orange is a pig¬ 
ment closely resembling vermilion. It is obtained by 
allowing a solution of sodium thiosulphate (hyposul¬ 
phite of soda) to act upon a solution of antimony chlo¬ 
ride. On heating to boiling a precipitate is formed 
which is washed and dried. It is a delicate scarlet 
powder, unalterable by air or light, or by deleterious 
atmospheric agents. It may be used both as an oil 
paint and a water color. 

Brilliant scarlet is the name given to the iodide of 
mercury, Hg I 2 , prepared by carefully precipitating a 
solution of mercuric chloride with a solution of potas¬ 
sium iodide. It has a brilliant scarlet color, but is 
very fugitive. It is rarely used as a pigment. 

Tuscan red is essentially a mixture of Indian red 
with some sort of lake color. The cheapest article is 
made from a reduced Indian red and rose pink. The 
richness of such article is very fleeting, particularly if 
the rose pink be simply whiting colored with a coal 
tar dye. It is apparent that the real value of a Tuscan 
red lies in the permanency of the lake coloring mater¬ 
ial employed to give it richness. 


PIGMENTS. 


49 


If a large percentage of a pure and fine Indian red 
be used, a very strong lake must be selected to secure 
brilliancy. The first quality of Tuscan red to be no¬ 
ticed is its brilliancy; next is opacity or body; its 
strength in tinting is not a very reliable guide to its 
value, for a dull and low-priced Tuscan red can very 
readily be of much greater staining power than a much 
more costly one. The quality of the tint, however, is 
a very good indication of the quality of the material 
employed in making the red. 

Fineness of grinding must be insisted on, because a 
Tuscan red, rich when coarse, may lose its richness 
when ground fine; that is when the strength of the 
Indian red element is fully developed. 

The relative permanency may be quickly deter¬ 
mined by painting out samples, exposing them for sev¬ 
eral weeks in the sum, and comparing them with du¬ 
plicates kept in a shady place. 

Derby red is the basic chromate of lead. It is also 
called chrome vermilion and Austrian vermilion. It 
is formed from neutral lead chromate by withrawing 
from the latter half its chromic acid by potassium, 
either by fusing with saltpetre or by potash lye. On a 
small scale Derby red is prepared by bringing saltpetre 
to the fusing point at a very moderate red heat and 
gradually introducing neutral chrome yellow in small 
portions. The mass in the crucible is extracted with 
water; the Derby red which is separated is thoroughly 
washed and dried. The pigment thus obtained is of a 
beautiful vermilion color, and consists of lustrous par¬ 
ticles of crystals. 

In the wet way Derby red is prepared by precipita¬ 
ting acetate of lead with a solution of potassium chro¬ 
mate to which a small quantity of caustic potash has 
previously been added. 

4 


50 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

All chrome reds from the darkest vermilion to the 
dullest minium color are distinguished one from an¬ 
other only by the size of the crystals of which the 
powder consists. If, for instance, chrome yellow of 
the most varying shades be reduced to a powder ot 
uniform fineness, a product of equal darkness is ob¬ 
tained and the brilliant color rivaling vermilion disap¬ 
pears. If therefore a chrome red of great depth of color 
is to be produced, the formation of crystals must oe in 
every way assisted and every disturbance by stirring 
etc., be carefully avoided. 

Especially beautiful basic lead chromate comes into 
commerce from Cologne under the names of chrome 
garnet and chrome carmine. 


PIGMENTS. 


51 


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PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARN1SHER. 


62 


Yellow and Orange Pigments. 

Yellow and- orange are colors abundant throughout 
nature, and there is quite a large list of pigments of 
these colors derived from the vegtable, animal and 
mineral kingdoms. The most important, however, 
are the chromes and ochres, the others being only used 
in small quantities. 

The chromes are particularly susceptible to adultera¬ 
tion, it being frequently difficult to find one of these 
colors over 50 per cent. pure. They vary in color from 
a pale yellow through deep yellow, orange to bright 
red, and are sold under a variety of names—primrose 
chrome, lemon chrome, chrome yellow, orange chrome, 
scarlet chrome, chrome red or Derby red (which has 
already been described under red pigments), etc. The 
base of all these pigments is the chromate of lead and 
its basic derivative. 

The normal chromate of lead is a deep yellow colored 
body, and is obtained by precipitating a solution of 
bichchromate of potash with one of lead acetate. A 
lead solution is first prepared, a number of small wooden 
tubs placed one above the other being used for the 
purpose. The tubs are filled with granulated lead and 
after closing the cocks with which they are provided, 
vinegar is poured into the uppermost tub. After about 
10 minutes the cork in the bottom of the tub is opened 
and the fluid allowed to run into the second tub, from 
there into the third, and so on. The tubs remain 
standing without vinegar until the lead is covered 
with a bluish white film. The uppermost tub then re¬ 
ceives its charge of vinegar. After h to 1 hour the vine¬ 
gar is discharged into the second tub, and so on until 
the saturated lead solution containing lead acetate ar¬ 
rives in the collecting tub. For the preparation of 


PIGMENTS. 


53 


chrome yellow the fluid is compounded with so much 
vinegar that it just begins to show an acid reaction, 
and it is then brought into a larger tub for clearing. 
In another tub a solution of 55 lbs. of bichromate of 
potassium in 500 quarts of water is kept in readiness. 
Lead liquor is then poured into the bichromate of po¬ 
tassium solution as long as a precipitate is formed. 
The precipitate is washed and dried. With the use of 
Glauber’s salt (sodium sulphate) as a precipitant in con¬ 
nection with bichromate of potassium, almost any 
shade of yellow can be obtained ; in fact, the shade of 
the pigment depends upon the proportion between the 
two precipitants. The more sodium sulphate is pre¬ 
sent, the paler will be the shade of yellow obtained, a 
fact which can be gathered by an examination of the 
following receipts : 

Pure lemon yellow. Lead acetate 100 lbs. bichro¬ 
mate of potash 25, Glauber’s salt 35. 

Pure chrome yellow. Lead acetate 100 lbs., bichro¬ 
mate of potash 30, Glauber’s salt 21. 

Pure deep chrome yellow. Lead acetate 100 lbs., 
bichromate of potash 35. 

American chrome yellow is made by using alum in 
the place of Glauber’s salt. The product is a fine one, 
the alumina salt seeming to exert a beneficial influ¬ 
ence on the fineness of the precipitate. The following 
are examples of the proportions generally used: 



Deep. 

Medium. 

Pale. 

Lead acetate. 

120 

100 

100 

Potassium bichromate. 

20 

20 

20 

Alum. 

100 

100 

100 

Barytes. 

40 

60 

80 

Gypsum. 

— 

—- 

80 

















54 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

A cheaper class of chrome yellow is made by pre¬ 
cipitating the chromate of lead on a white base, bar¬ 
ytes, china clay and whiting being used for the pur¬ 
pose. When well made these are quite as good to use 
as the technically pure chromes, although the prefer¬ 
ence is given to the latter by most users. 

Chrome orange. As with the yellows, no actually 
chemically pure oranges are made, the technically 
pure colors containing more or less sulphate of lead, 
while the common colors generally contain barytes. 
Pure chrome orange may be made as follows: Dis¬ 
solve separately in water 100 lbs. of lead acetate, 35 
lbs. of bichromate of potash or soda, and 9 lbs. of 77 
per cent, caustic soda. Run the lead solution into a 
precipitating tank, then add the bichromate solution, 
whereby chrome yellow is precipitated. This is al¬ 
lowed to settle, the clear supernatant liquor drawn off’, 
and then the caustic soda solution is added to the yel¬ 
low. The mixture is heated until the desired shade is 
obtained. The orange is next allowed to settle, the 
supernatant liquor drawn off, the pigment two or 
three times washed with water and dried, when it is 
ready for use. 

Common chrome orange is prepared as follows: 
Make a chrome yellow as described above from lead 
acetate 100 lbs., barytes 200, and bichromate of potas¬ 
sium 35, then add 10 lbs. of quicklime freshly slaked. 
Boil until the desired shade is developed, wash and dry 
the pigment. The shade of the orange is modified by 
the quantity of barytes which may be used in propor¬ 
tion to the other constitutents. The amount of alkali 
used and the length of boiling also have some influ¬ 
ence. Gypsum or china clay may be substituted for 
barytes if required. 


PIGMENTS. 


55 


Pure chromes of medium and paler shades are so 
strong that when used for solid color, a considerable 
proportion of white lead may be mixed with them 
without materially affecting the tone. They are so 
strong in body that they may be worked out very thin 
and yet cover perfectly, so that in every way they are 
cheaper than the reduced ones. 

Adulteration may be tested by tinting strength. 
Note carefully that the pale shades do not incline to 
a greenness in tone, for such are certain to blacken 
quickly, even when mixed with white lead. Also note 
the grinding, which should be perfectly fine; on glass, 
under the knife, not the faintest trace of grit should be 
found in the pure article. An abnormally bright 
chrome may be suspected of being adulterated with 
orange mineral. A good orange mineral really bright¬ 
ens an orange chrome, but is a dangerous element in 
it. 

Zinc chronic is prepared either by precipitating a 
solution of zinc sulphate with a solution of chromate 
of potash, or by treating zinc oxide with either chromic 
acid or potassium bichromate. 

Zinc chrome is a yellow pigment of good color and 
body. It is quite permanent, resisting exposure to 
light and air, when well made. It can be mixed with 
all other colors without being affected by them. It is 
not equal, as regards color and body, to lead chromes. 

Barium chrome. The use of this pigment has be¬ 
come obsolete on account of its having only a very 
pale yellow color and its want of body. It may be 
prepared by precipitating a solution of barium chlo¬ 
ride with potassium bichromate. 

Turner's yellow , also known as Cassel yellow , Mont¬ 
pelier yellow , Verona yellow. This pigment is essen- 


50 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


tially an oxychloride or basic chloride of lead. It is 
obtained by treating lead oxide with common salt so¬ 
lution, whereby white oxychloride of lead is separated. 
The latter is then washed, dried, put in a crucible and 
calcined at a gentle heat sufficient to melt the mass. 
The shade .of yellow depends upon the temperature 
and duration of the heating. 

Another method consists in fusing 1 part sal am¬ 
moniac with ten parts of lead oxide, whereby a yel¬ 
lowish foliated crystalline mass is obtained, which is 
triturated to a fine powder and washed. 

Since the introduction of the chrome yellow, the use 
of this pigment has been almost entirely abandoned. 

Naples yellow, is a compound of the oxides of anti¬ 
mony and lead. According to Brunner it is prepared 
by intimately mixing 1 part of chemically pure tartar 
emetic with 2 parts of nitrate of lead and 4 parts of 
common salt, fusing the mixture in a Hessian crucible 
and maintaining it at a moderate red heat for two 
hours. When cold the solid mass is taken from the 
crucible, extracted with water, whereby the common 
salt is dissolved out, when the pigment is dried. By 
treatment with very dilute hydrochloric acid an excess 
of lead oxide may be withdrawn from the pigment in 
order to give it greater deptli and intensity of color. 

A cheaper, but not so beautiful a product, is obtained 
by mixing 2 parts of an alloy of equal parts of lead and 
antimony with 3 parts of saltpetre and 4 of common 
salt, calcining the mixture, and washing. 

According to the Paris process 12 parts of antimony 
are calcined, triturated with 8 parts of minium and 4 
parts of zinc oxide, and the mixture is fused. 

Naples yellow was at one time a favorite color with 
artists, but is now seldom used. It is bright, but not 


PIGMENTS. 


57 


in this respect equal to the chromes. They are fairly 
fast when exposed to light, but like all lead colors are 
affected by sulphureous gases. 

King 1 s yellow. This pigment is the trisulphide of 
arsenic. It was at one time in extensive use, as it is a 
very bright pigment, almost rivalling the chromes in 
beauty. It has a good body but is not a durable color, 
exposure to air causing it to fade. Furthermore, being 
an arsenic color it is very poisonous, and therefore, its 
use connot be recommended. It is found native as the 
mineral orpiment, which is sometimes ground up and 
used as pigment. Artificially the pigment is obtained 
by dissolving arsenic in hydrochloric acid and passing 
a current of sulphuretted hydrogen through the solu¬ 
tion. A fine yellow precipitate is obtained, which is 
collected and dried at a gentle heat. 

The pigment may also be obtained by sublimation, 
the process being as follows : Sublimed sulphur 1 part 
and white arsenic 2 parts are thoroughly mixed to¬ 
gether and placed in a crucible. The latter is covered 
with another crucible or with a special condenser, and 
heated in a furnace. The arsenic and sulphur react 
and form the sulphide, which, being volatile, sublimes 
into the cover and is collected, washed and dried. 

Realgar , arsenic orange . This is a native arsenic 
disulphide found in small quantities in various local¬ 
ities. It is artificially prepared by fusing together sul¬ 
phur with an excess of white arsenic; or, on a large 
scale, by sublimation as follows: Mix 3 parts of 
arsenic, 2 of flowers of sulphur, and 4 of charcoal. A 
charge of 60 lbs. of this mixture is heated at a time in 
earthen crucibles so arranged that the product which 
sublimes can be collected. This sublimate is then re- 
melted to form the pigment. Since the introduction 


58 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

of the chrome yellows, the use of arsenic orange has 
been almost entirely abandoned. 

Cadmium yellow. All the hues and tints, from the 
palest lemon cadmium to the fiery orange red, are due 
to one compound only of cadmium, namely the sul¬ 
phide, which is represented by the formula CdS, and 
contains 112 parts by weight of cadmium to 32 parts of 
sulphur. As commonly prepared, cadmium yellow is 
of an orange hue; when this compound separates 
slowly from a solution, or is made in any way to take 
a dense or aggregated form, it becomes of a decided 
reddish orange. The orange-yellow variety, when 
very finely ground, becomes less red and more inclined 
to yellow. Some of the palest cadmium yellows con¬ 
tain white pigments or flour of sulphur, added to re¬ 
duce their depth of color. Yellow cadmium is pre¬ 
prepared in several ways. A slightly acid solution of 
any cadmium salt is prepared and through it is passed 
a current of sulphuretted hydrogen gas. The product 
thus obtained has a pure chrome yellow shade. A 
lemon yellow shade may be obtained by dissolving 1 
lb. of cadmium sulphate in 4 gallons of water and ad¬ 
ding 1^ gallons of the ordinary yellow ammonium sul¬ 
phide. 

Orange cadmium is prepared as follows: Make a 
solution of cadmium sulphate or chloride. Render the 
solution strongly acid by the addition of excess of hy¬ 
drochloric acid, and pass through it a current of sul¬ 
phuretted hydrogen gas. 

All the precipitates of yellow obtained in the various 
ways just described must be thoroughly washed in 
waiter, especially those obtained with the ammonium 
sulphide, to free them from any trace of acid or sul¬ 
phide, which, if left in, would ultimately lead to the 


PIGMENTS. 


59 


destruction of the color. After being washed they 
should be thoroughly dried at as low a temperature as- 
possible, not exceeding about 150° F. 

Pure cadmium yellow is one of the most permanent 
pigments known, it being unaffected by exposure to 
light and air. It mixes with any vehicle used in 
painting. When heated strongly the color darkens, 
changing to a dark violet-red ; on cooling the original 
color comes back, but not always in its original brilli¬ 
ance. 

Cobalt yellow , aureolin. This pigment is a com¬ 
pound of the nitrites of cobalt and potassium. It is 
prepared by precipitating cobalt nitrate with sodium 
carbonate, dissolving the precipitate in acetic acid and 
adding a strong solution of potassium nitrite. On al¬ 
lowing the mixture to stand for some time the color is 
gradually precipitated, and is collected, washed and 
dried, when it is ready for use. 

Cobalt yellow is a pure yellow color, and is almost 
transparent whether used in water or oil painting. 

Yellow ochre is a native pigment found in most 
countries. It varies considerably in constitution and 
color, in which latter particular it is found from a 
bright but not very vivid yellow to a brown yellow 
called spruce ochre , and is always of a warm cast. Its 
natural variety is much increased by artificial dress¬ 
ing and compounding. The best yellow ochres are 
not powerful, but as far as they go are valuable pig¬ 
ments, particularly in fresco and distemper, being 
neither subject to change by ordinary light, nor much 
affected by impure air. By time, however, and the di¬ 
rect rays of the sun, they are somewhat darkened, and 
by burning are converted into light reds. They are 
among the most ancient pigments, may all be pro- 


60 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

duced artificially in endless variety as they exist in na¬ 
ture, and iron is the principal coloring matter in all. 
The natural ochres are prepared for use by grinding 
and levigating. The plant used for this purpose varies 
at different works, its construction being largely de¬ 
pendent upon the nature of the ochre which is treated. 
Some ochres are soft and powdery, these only require 
levigation ; while others are harder and need to be 
ground before they can be levigated. 

Oxford oclire is a native pigment from the neighbor¬ 
hood of Oxford, England. It is semi-opaque, of a 
warm yellow color and soft argillaceous texture, ab¬ 
sorbent of water and oil, in both of which it may be 
used with safety. Similar ochres are found in the Isle 
of Wight, in the neighborhood of Bordeaux and var¬ 
ious other places. 

Stone ochre. True stone ochres are found in balls 
or globular masses of various sizes in the solid body of 
stones, lying near the surface of rocks. These balls 
are of a smooth compact texture, generally free from 
grit and of a powdery fracture. They vary exceedingly 
in color, from yellow to brown and gray, but do not 
differ in other respects from the preceding, and may be 
used in oil or water in the several modes of painting, 
and for browns and dull reds in enamel. Varieties of 
ochrous colors are produced by burning and com¬ 
pounding with lighter, brighter and darker colors. 

Sienna , terra di Sienna, is also a ferruginous native 
pigment, and appears to be an iron ore, which may be 
considered as a crude natural yellow lake, firm in sub¬ 
stance, of a glossy fracture, and very absorbent. The 
Roman siennas are found in hollows oil hillsides, 
which hollows are now filled up with deposits of 
sienna, but at one time were the sites of small ponds 


PIGMENTS. 


61 


into which flowed streams highly charged with iron 
and manganese, from deposits of those materials situ¬ 
ated above the ponds. 

Siennas are sold in two forms, raw and burnt. 
Burnt sienna is prepared by calcining the raw sienna 
at a moderate red heat until it has acquired the desired 
shade. Burnt sienna is richer in color, deeper and 
more transparent, and works and dries better than raw 
sienna. 

Orange ochre , also called Spanish ochre 1 etc., is a 
very bright yellow ochre, burnt, by which operation it 
acquires warmth, color, transparency and depth. 

Mars orange is an artificial ochre similar to the 
above. It is made by taking equal weights of ferrous 
sulphate and alum, and adding a solution of carbonate 
of soda, thereby precipitating the iron and alumina. 
The precipitate, which forms a yellow pigment, the so- 
called Mars yellow, is collected, washed well with 
water, dried and converted into orange, by slightly 
calcining. 

Indian yellow or Purree. This remarkable pigment 
is obtained at Monghyr, a town in Bengal, from the 
urine of cows which have been fed upon mango leaves. 
It generally occurs in the form of large balls, having 
an offensive urinous odor. 

Indian yellow is an impure magnesium salt of eux- 
anthic acid. The essential part of it is a compound 
containing 4.5 per cent, magnesia, 18.7 per cent, water, 
and 78.7 per cent, euxantliic anhydride ; but this sub¬ 
stance is always associated, even in the most carefully 
purified samples of prepared Indian yellow, with var¬ 
ious impurities both mineral and organic. 

For artistic purposes the crude imported Indian yel¬ 
low is thoroughly powdered, and then washed with 


62 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

boiling water until the liquid filtered from it is no 
longer colored ; a brown impurity and much of the evil 
smell is thus removed. The color of the washed pro¬ 
duct is enriched by leaving it in contact for a day or 
two with saturated solution of sal ammoniac, and then 
repeating the treatment with hot water. 


CHARACTERISTICS OF YELLOW AND ORANGE PIGMENTS. 


PIGMENTS. 


63 


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pp 2 






















64 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNIS1IER. 

Green Pigments. 

There are quite a large number of green pigments de¬ 
rived from both natural and artificial sources, but 
usually from the latter. The following are some of 
the principal greens: 

Brunswick green. Under this name will first be 
described the old Brunswick green, which is a basic 
chloride of copper. Its use has become almost ob¬ 
solete, it having been supplanted by the modern 
Brunswick green, which will be described later on. 
The old Brunswick green is prepared as follows: 
Bring 10 lbs. of copper turnings in a vessel which can 
be closed; over them pour a solution of 15 lbs. of am¬ 
monium chloride in 3 gallons of water. Close the 
vessel and mix the contents by shaking. Keep the 
vessel in a warm place for about two months and at 
intervals mix the contents by shaking. At the end 
of the time the vessel is opened, when it will be found 
that most of the copper has been converted into the 
green oxychloride. The green is collected by washing 
it with water to free it from any alkaline bodies, 
sieving to free it from unchanged copper, and drying 
slowly at a low temperature, since high temperatures 
tend to decompose it. It is necessarily somewhat 
costly. It works well both in oil and water and has a 
good covering power. As previously stated, it has 
been almost entirely superseded by the 

Modern Brunswick greens. These pigments can be 
made in various ways, almost every color-maker hav¬ 
ing his own method of mixing the various ingredients. 
By the dry method , the materials composing the 
green are thrown into the pan of an edge-runner 
grinding-mill or into a mixing-mill. For producing 
the various shades of Brunswick green the following 
proportions may be used: 


PIGMENTS. 


65 


Constituents. 

Brunswick 

green 


Pale. 

Medium. 

Deep. 

Extra 

Deep. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

Barytes. 

110 

110 

110 

110 

Prussian blue. 

1* 

2\ 

5 

8 

Chrome-yellow .... 

35 

35 

35 

35 


Gypsum in the proportion of 1 to 2$ of barytes may 
be substituted for the latter. 

For producing the various shades of Brunswick 
green by the wet method, the following proportions 
may be used, which, as well as those given above, 
may be varied so as to suit special requirements. In 
making alterations in the proportions, care should be 
taken to use equal weights of prussiate and copperas, 
and to have the proportion of acetate of lead to the 
bichromate of potash as nearly as possible 10 to 31. 



Brunswick 

green 

• 

Constituents. 

Pale. 

Medium. 

Deep. 

Extra 

Deep. 


lbs. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

Barytes. 

110 

110 

110 

110 

Acetate of lead. 

13 

131 

14 

16 

Copperas. 

1 

n 

2 

4 

Yellow prussiate of pot¬ 
ash . 

1 

H 

2 

4 

Bichromate of potash • 

4 

4i 

4J 

5 


Dissolve the iron salt in a tank of cold water, and 
5 














































66 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

the lead salt in another tank; the two potash salts 
may be dissolved together in one tank. Mix the 
barytes with water in another tank, and when prop¬ 
erly mixed run in the iron solution, with constant 
stirring, and then add the lead solution. After the 
latter has been run in and mixed with the rest, add 
the solution of the potash salts, stirring constantly. 
The green soon forms and is allowed to settle. The 
clear supernatant liquor is then drawn off, and the 
pigment repeatedly washed with water. It is then 
thrown on filters to drain, and finally dried at a mod¬ 
erate heat. 

The pigments, above described, work well in both oil 
and water. They are sold under various names such as 
chrome green, Victoria green, Prussian green, etc., 
but they are best known as Brunswick green. They 
are quite permanent for all practical purposes. 

Chrome Green. This pigment consists of the oxide 
of chrome Cr 2 0 3 . A beautiful but expensive pro¬ 
duct is obtained in the form of a very delicate, gener¬ 
ally very dark green powder, by heating mercurous 
chromate under the exclusion of air. According to 
Guignet’s process chrome green, or GuigneVs green as 
it is sometimes called, is obtained by fusing together 
at a red heat 1 part potassium bichromate and 3 parts 
of boric acid, lixiviating the fused mass with water 
and grinding. 

Arnaudori's green is the phosphate of chromium, 
Cr 2 2P0 4 . It is prepared by heating in a dish 128 parts 
of neutral crystallized ammonium phosphate and 149 
parts of potassium bichromate to from 338° to 356° F., 
but not exceeding 392° F., until the mixture has ac¬ 
quired a beautiful green color, and washing the mass 
with hot water. The pigment resists acids, alkalies 


PIGMENTS. 


67 


and sulphuretted hydrogen. Instead of phosphoric 
acid, arsenic acid is occasionally found in the combi¬ 
nation ; this renders the pigment more beautiful, but 
also very injurious. 

Plessy's green. This pigment is prepared as follows: 
Dissolve 2 lbs. of potassium bichromate in 10 quarts 
of boiling water, add 3 quarts of a solution of calcium 
phosphate and 2^ lbs. of cane sugar. A violent evolu¬ 
tion of gas takes place, which is moderated by pouring 
water on the froth. The pigment will have settled by 
the next day, when the supernatant fluid is drawn off 
and the precipitate washed with cold water until all 
acid reaction has disappeared. It is finally dried at a 
moderate heat. The pigment resists the action of 
light, sulphuretted hydrogen and acids. It works 
well, both in oil and water. 

Schnitzels green is obtained by dissolving 15 parts 
of potassium bichromate in 36 parts of sodium phos¬ 
phate, melted in its water of crystallization, and add¬ 
ing 6 parts of tartaric acid. Effervescence takes place 
and the color of the melting mass passes from yellow 
into green. The residue is moistened with as much 
hydrochloric acid as it will absorb, then washed, first 
with cold, and next with boiling water, pulverized, 
levigated and dried. 

Verdigris , or acetate of copper , occurs in commerce 
as neutral or crystallized verdigris and as basic or 
common verdigris. The neutral or crystallized ver¬ 
digris is neutral acetate of copper, which was origin¬ 
ally prepared by the Dutch, who, to mislead other 
manufacturers, called the preparation distilled verdi¬ 
gris, under which name it is now generally known. 
It is very rarely used as a pigment, on account of its 
crystalline nature. It is prepared by dissolving copper 


G8 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

or oxide of copper in acetic acid obtained in the dis¬ 
tillation of wood. 

The basic, or common verdigris, is of the most im¬ 
portance from the painter’s point of view. In France 
it is prepared by placing the skins and marcs of grapes, 
left after the juice has been pressed out for making 
wine, in large tubs, loosely covered with netting. In 
a few days, when acetic fermentation sets in, sheets 
of copper are thrown in. They are left in the tubs 
among the grape skins for 18 to 20 days, when the tubs 
are emptied and the grape refuse thrown away. The 
copper sheets are dried, then dipped into water and 
again dried. By this means a coat of verdigris is 
formed on the plates, which is scraped off. The plates 
are re-dipped, when another coating of verdigris is 
formed and scraped off as before, the process being re¬ 
peated until all the copper has been converted into 
verdigris. The green is washed with water and then 
dried, when it is ready for use. 

Verdigris has a greenish-blue color. It is fairly per¬ 
manent in oil, but it soon fades in water. 

Sc heelers green , or mineral green, consists essentially 
of cupric hydrate and cupric arsenate, and, according 
to Sharpies, has the formula Cu 2 As 2 0 G .2H 2 0. It is ob¬ 
tained by mixing, with constant stirring, a solution 
of 6 parts of pure sulphate of copper, free from iron, 
with a solution of 2 parts of arsenic acid and 8 parts of 
crystallized soda. The grass-green precipitate formed 
is washed with warm water and dried. 

Sclieele’s green is of a pale yellowish-green color, but 
not very bright. As a pigment it is not satisfactory, 
its covering power being small. It is not permanent, 
and fades on exposure to light and air. 

Although under the name of mineral green are, as a 


PIGMENTS. 


69 


rule, understood the paler varieties of Berlin blue 
mixed with clay, or kaolin, etc., the natural green 
mineral, known as malachite, is also offered under this 
name and that of mountain green for use as a pig¬ 
ment. Malachite is a natural basic carbonate of cop¬ 
per, and is found in many places. For use as a 
pigment it is simply ground as finely as possible. It 
makes a good pigment, is fairly permanent, and works 
well both in oil and water. 

Schweinfurth green, or emerald green. The name 
Schweinfurth green is derived from the place where 
the pigment is supposed to have been first made, 
while in* this country it is generally known as “ Paris 
green,'''’ under which name it is largely consumed as 
an insecticide. It is the most beautiful of all copper 
pigments, but also the most injurious to health. It is 
an aceto-arsenite of copper of somewhat variable com¬ 
position, according to the process by which it has been 
made. For its preparation Ehrmann dissolves sep¬ 
arately equal parts of white arsenic and neutral verdi¬ 
gris in water, and mixes the boiling hot concentrated 
solutions. A flaky olive green precipitate of arsenite 
of copper is immediately formed while the liquor con¬ 
tains free acetic acid. By allowing the precipitate to 
stand quietly in the liquor, it becomes dense and crys¬ 
talline, green spots, which gradually become larger, 
being at the same time formed in it, until, in the 
course of a few hours, it is completely converted into 
an intensely green, granular, crystalline mass. The 
pigment thus formed is filtered off and washed with 
boiling water. 

According to Braconnot 80 lbs. of sulphate of copper 
are dissolved in as small a quantity of boiling water as 
possible, and the hot solution is mixed with a hot con- 


70 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

centrated solution of arsenite of soda, or of potash, 
which contains 40 lbs. of white arsenic. A dirty green 
precipitate is immediately formed. By adding to the 
fluid 15 quarts of concentrated wood vinegar, the pre¬ 
cipitate is converted into Schweinfurth green, which, 
to prevent the separation and admixture of arsenic, is 
immediately filtered off and washed with boiling 
water. 

Schweinfurth green is a bluish-green of a very fine 
tint, quite different from any other pigment and very 
difficult to imitate. It has good covering power and 
works well in both oil and water. It resists exposure 
to the light and air, but in a damp place it turns 
brownish. The use of Schweinfurth green lias been on 
the decrease of late years, partially owing to its poison¬ 
ous character, due to its containing arsenic. 

Bremen green is essentially copper hydrate, and 
forms an extremely loose and pale blue mass, the color 
of which has, however, a somewhat greenish tinge. 
When used as a water color it gives a pale blue, but 
when employed as an oil paint the original blue color 
turns green in 24 hours, owing to the copper oxide 
combining with the fatty acids of the oil to a green 
copper soap. 

For the preparation of Bremen green 112J lbs. of 
common salt and 111 lbs. of sulphate of copper are 
ground with water to a stiff paste; this results in the 
formation of chloride of copper and sulphate of soda. 
With the paste are mixed 1124 lbs. of clean copper in 
small pieces about 1 cubic inch in size. All these are 
thoroughly mixed together and kept in wooden boxes 
or tubs. At intervals of two or three days the mass is 
turned over with a wooden spade, so as to insure that 
the metal and paste are brought into intimate contact 


PIGMENTS. 


71 


With one another. In about three months all the 
copper will have been converted into a green basic 
oxychloride of copper. The latter is insoluble in 
water, and, after it lias been formed, the mass is 
thrown into tubs and thoroughly washed with water, 
whereby all the soluble alkaline compounds are 
washed out. 

If the pigment is to be converted into Bremen bine , 
the green is mixed with a small quantity of hydro¬ 
chloric acid and allowed to stand for 24 hours. To the 
pasty mass is then added about times its volume of 
caustic soda at 40° Tw., which is thoroughly mixed 
with it. The mass is then allowed to stand for 36 to 
48 hours, by which time it will have been converted 
into the required blue. It is now thoroughly washed 
with water to free it from soda, and dried, when it is 
ready for use. 

Casselmanri's green is prepared by mixing a boiling 
hot solution of sulphate of copper with a boiling solu¬ 
tion of an alkaline acetate. The precipitate formed is 
a basic copper oxide salt, having the formula CuS() 4 .- 
3 Cu( 0H 2 ).4H 2 0. Dried and triturated it forms Cassel- 
mann’s green, which, next to Schweinfurtli green, is 
the most beautiful of all copper colors. 

St annate of copper, or Gentele's green is prepared by 
precipitating sulphate of copper with sodium stannate, 
and washing and drying the precipitate. It is a beau¬ 
tiful, non-poisonous green pigment. 

Terre verte is the name given to an ochre of a bluish- 
green color, not very bright, moderately hard, and 
smooth in texture. In some cases the pigment has 
been named after its place of occurrence, as Verona 
green , Verona earth , etc. These natural greens are 
useful on account of their permanency, they being un- 


72 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

affected by strong light and impure air, and combin¬ 
ing with other colors without injury. 

Terre verte is found in masses of a more or less com¬ 
pact character. Some varieties are soft and easily 
powdered, others are harder and more vitreous in 
appearance. For use as a pigment the mineral is 
ground up as fine as possible. The pigment mixes well 
with either oil or water. Heat turns its color to a red¬ 
dish-brown, the change being similar in nature to that 
which takes place when ochres are heated. 

Itinmann’s green , cobalt green , or zinc green , is a 
compound of the oxides of zinc and cobalt, and is pre¬ 
pared as follows: Dissolve nitrate of cobalt 1 lb., or 
chloride of cobalt £ lb., and sulphate of zinc 6 lbs. in 7 
gallons of water. Then add solution of carbonate of 
soda as long as a precipitate falls. Filter the mixture 
and wash the precipitate of hydroxides of cobalt and 
zinc thus obtained. The precipitate is finally dried 
and heated at a bright red heat in a muffle furnace for 
a few hours, until the green has been fully developed. 

Cobalt green has a bright green color, of a slightly 
yellow hue. It is perfectly permanent when exposed 
to light and air, and is, on that account, a useful pig¬ 
ment, but owing to its cost it is not much used. 

Sap green is prepared from buckthorn berries, as 
follows: The berries are allowed to ferment slightly by 
placing them in a warm place for a few days. They 
are then pressed, the juice is collected and alum added 
in the proportion of from n oz. to 1 oz. per pound of 
juice. The mixture is then boiled down and evapor¬ 
ated at the boiling heat. 

Sap green is a dark yellowish pigment. When dry 
it breaks with a glossy fracture. It is chiefly used as a 
glazing color. 


CHARACTERISTICS OF GREEN PIGMENTS. 


PIGMENTS. 


GQ 

02 


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02 

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02 

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A^3 Pa • 

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p-vg c g 22 

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fl^*Slar.§ 

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r 77 v ^ r— S-. 4 _J .H 

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gaa 
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74 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Blue Pigments. 

Although blue is a very important color, there are 
but few blue pigments, but these possess the merit of 
being more permanent and, therefore, more useful 
than any other group of pigments. One of the most 
important pigments possessed by the painter is 

Ultramarine , a magnificent blue color, which was 
formerly extracted from the mineral known as lapis- 
lazuli ', which is found of very varying purity and color 
in Siberia, Transylvania, in the Andes, and in several 
regions of Persia, Thibet and China. To prepare a pig¬ 
ment from this mineral, selected pieces of small size, as 
free as possible from pyrites and other impurities, are 
heated in a crucible and quenched in cold water, or 
very weak vinegar. The mineral, thus disintegrated, 
is washed by decantation, then dried and carefully 
ground. The powder is then purified by elutriation, 
the several wash waters depositing pigments of differ¬ 
ent depths of color and of different degrees of fineness. 
Very little of this natural ultramarine is now pro¬ 
duced, it having been almost entirely replaced by the 
Artificial ultramarine. By the chemical analysis 
of lapis-lazuli an accurate knowledge of its composition 
was obtained, which finally led to the production of 
artificial ultramarine. In 1828 Guimet, an eminent 
French manufacturing chemist, succeeded in making 
it on a large scale. His process is still used by his suc¬ 
cessors, but has not been published. Gmelin also in¬ 
terested himself in the production of ultramarine, and, 
in 1828, published an elaborate description of his 
method of making it. About 1834, Dr. Leverkus 
started its manufacture in Germany at works which 
are still in existence. There are two varieties of arti¬ 
ficial ultramarine, green and blue. The green variety 


PIGMENTS. 


75 


may be converted into blue, either by a roasting pro¬ 
cess or by the addition of sulphur. As regards the 
process of manufacture three different kinds of ultra- 
marine may be distinguished: 1. Sulphate ultra- 
marine; 2. Soda ultramarine; and 3. Silica ultra- 
marine. 

For the preparation of sulphate ultramarine, mix¬ 
tures of kaolin (free from water), calcined sodium sul¬ 
phate, coal or charcoal and sulphur, are heated in 
closed chamotte crucibles to a bright red heat. The 
proportions of the above-named substances, as gener¬ 
ally used, may be seen from the following examples: 



I. 

II. 

Kaolin (free from water). 

. 100 

100 

Calcined sodium sulphate. 

. 83 to 100 

41 

Calcined soda. 


41 

Coal . 

17 

17 

Sulphur. 


13 


The product obtained by heating is levigated, pul¬ 
verized, washed and dried, and then forms a green 
powder, which is sold either as green ultramarine or 
is converted into blue. 

The conversion of green ultramarine into blue is 
effected in various ways. Generally the green ultra- 
marine is mixed with sulphur and roasted at a low 
temperature, so that the sulphur may burn to sulphur¬ 
ous acid 'and a portion of the sodium sulphate is oxi¬ 
dized, the latter being extracted by washing the blue 
ultramarine which is formed. The roasting is effected 
in small cylindrical vessels imbedded in brickwork 
over an ordinary fire-place. These cylinders are closed 
at the back end, but open in front, which is fitted with 
a door made of wrought iron. In this door are two 






76 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

apertures for the purpose of charging the cylinder with 
sulphur, while a pipe from the top of the cylinder 
carries off the gases produced by the burning of the 
sulphur. An agitator is fitted to the cylinder, by 
means of which its contents can be kept well mixed 
during the progress of the operation. When the con¬ 
tents of the cylinders have been sufficiently heated to 
ignite sulphur, the fire is moderated, and sulphur 
thrown in and allowed to burn. This treatment with 
sulphur is continued until the ultramarine shows the 
desired blue color. According to other methods roast¬ 
ing is effected in a muffle furnace or upon trays in a 
furnace of special construction. 

After roasting, the ultramarine is washed, the sodium 
sulphate passing into the wash water and is gained as 
a by-product. The washed ultramarine is ground fine 
and by elutriation sorted into various degrees of fine¬ 
ness. Different kinds of ultramarine showed the fol¬ 
lowing compositions: 


I. II. III. 

Silica. 40.25 39.10 38.95 

Alumina. 26.62 26.72 25.87 

Sulphur. 13.42 12.35 13.91 

Soda. 19.89 21.83 21.27 


In the preparation of soda ultramarine , mixtures are 
used which contain little or no sodium sulphate, but 
soda instead of it. 

There is but a very slight difference between sul¬ 
phate and soda ultramarine. If more soda than 
sodium sulphate is used the product is called soda 
ultramarine, and sulphate ultramarine if more sodium 
sulphate than soda is employed. 

The following proportions may be used: 






PIGMENTS. 



77 

Kaolin. 

. 100 

100 

100 

Sodium sulphate. 


41 

— 

Soda. 

. 100 

41 

90 

Coal. 

. 12 

17 

6 

Sulphur. 

. 60 

13 

100 

Colophony. . .. 



6 


The heating or roasting is effected in glass-pots, or, 
better, in a reverberatory furnace. A white mass, the 
so-called ultramarine mother , is at first obtained, after 
which a green, porous product results, which, on cool¬ 
ing, absorbs oxygen and is mostly converted into blue 
ultramarine. 

For the complete conversion into blue ultramarine it 
is finally subjected to a roasting process with sulphur 
in large muffles. The white ultramarine mother and 
the blue ultramarine show the following composition: 

White Blue 

ultramarine, ultramarine. 


Silica. 

40.26 

38.68 

Alumina. 

29.69 

27.70 

Soda . 

24.38 

16.56 

Alumina soluble in water . . 


2.04 

Sodium chloride. 


10.63 

Sulphur (total). 

Sulphur separable as sulphur- 

6.89 

3.81 

6.09 

2.00 

etted hydrogen. 


It may here be mentioned that the white ultra¬ 
marine mother can also be converted into blue ultra- 
marine by treatment with anhydrous sulphuric acid, 
hydrochloric acid free from water, chlorine, carbonic 
acid, and bisulphide of carbon. 

Silica ultramarine. For the preparationT)f this pro¬ 
duct 5 to 10 per cent, of the weight of kaolin used of 
finely divided silica is added to the above-mentioned 
mixtures for soda ultramarine. The resulting ultra- 



















78 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


marine is blue. This product differs from the pre¬ 
viously described varieties of ultramarine in possessing 
a peculiar reddish color and resisting the action of an 
alum solution which decomposes the other two vari¬ 
eties. 

The ultramarine blue obtained by roasting or calcin¬ 
ing is mixed with water in a tub, and steam is then in¬ 
troduced until the water boils. The ultramarine is 
then allowed to settle, when steam is again introduced 
until the water boils. After several times repeating 
this operation the ultramarine is ground, elutriated 
and dried in enameled pans. The dried mass is again 
ground and bolted, or sieved. Ultramarine may also 
be prepared in the wet way, but the method has thus 
far not been a technical success. 

Violet ultramarine. IT. Zeltner, of Nuremberg, 
makes violet ultramarine by submitting either the 
green or blue varieties to the temperature of about 572° 
F. and passing chlorine gas over them. At first the 
color, if the blue is used, turns green, and then it be¬ 
comes dark red. At this point the operation is stopped 
and the red product is boiled in an alkaline solution 
until it turns violet, after which it is washed. 

Red ultramarine. In Marienberg, Germany, red 
ultramarine is directly obtained from ultramarine blue, 
rich in silica, by the action of hydrochloric acid and 
air. Zeltner prepares it as follows : The blue variety 
is exposed at a temperature of from 266° to 302° F. to 
the action of nitric acid vapors, when he obtains deep 
or dark red, or light rose or pink shades, according as 
the acid vapors are dilute or strong. 

As a pigment ultramarine is perfectly permanent 
when exposed under all ordinary conditions, it being 
fast in light and air, the only destructive agents being 


PIGMENTS. 


79 


acid vapors, which rapidly decolorize it. It can be 
mixed with all the ordinary vehicles used by painters, 
and with most other pigments, without being changed 
thereby or itself causing any change. Blue ultra- 
marine is distinguished by its pale but pure tone and 
by its tint of blue being quite different from that of all 
other blue pigments. 

Prussian blue, Berlin blue, or Chinese blue. In com¬ 
merce several varieties of Prussian blue are sold under 
the names, Chinese blue, Prussian blue, soluble blue, 
Antwerp blue, Brunswick blue, etc. Chinese blue, the 
name given to the best quality, is a blue of a greenish 
shade, and is prepared as follows: Dissolve 10 lbs. of 
ferrous sulphate (green copperas), as free as possible 
from oxide, in cold water, and add to the solution 1 lb. 
of sulphuric acid. This solution must be made as re¬ 
quired, as it soon begins to oxidize and to deposit oxide 
of iron. Next dissolve 10 lbs. of yellow prussiate of 
copper in water. The solutions should be made as 
dilute as possible, not less than 3 to 31 gallons of water 
for every 10 lbs. of material; even weaker solutions are 
preferable, as these yield finer precipitates than strong 
solutions, and thus facilitate the production of the 
lustre on the finished blue. 

On mixing the solutions a bluish-white precipitate is 
obtained, which is allowed to settle when the super¬ 
natant clear liquor is drawn off. To the blue remain¬ 
ing is added first a thin cream of 2 lbs. of bleach¬ 
ing powder with water, which is thoroughly mixed 
with the precipitate, and then a small quantity of hy¬ 
drochloric acid, and the blue color gradually develops. 
It is allowed to settle ; the supernatant liquor is then 
run off, and the blue thoroughly washed with water 
and drained on a filter. The wet mass is then pressed 


80 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

into drying pans and slowly dried in the dark at a 
temperature not exceeding 120° to 130° F: 

Chinese blue is generally sold in the form of small 
cubical lumps, but is also found in commerce in the 
form of fine powder. In grinding the blue great pre¬ 
caution is required to exclude particles of iron, as the 
production of a spark will ignite the dry powdered 
blue and reduce it to a mass of red oxide of iron. 

There are several ways of making the commoner 
kinds of Prussian blue, one of which will suffice as an 
example. Dissolve 10 lbs. each of yellow prussiate of 
potash and copperas in about 5 gallons of water, mix 
the two solutions, allow to settle, pour off the clear 
supernatant liquor, wash the color with water, then 
throw it on to the filter and allow it to be exposed to 
the air until it has acquired the desired shade. 

Soluble Prussian blue. While the varieties of Prus¬ 
sian blue above described are insoluble in water and 
acid, a blue soluble in water may be prepared as fol¬ 
lows : Prussian blue is treated with hydrochloric acid 
or concentrated sulphuric acid for one or two days, 
then thoroughly washed with water, dried and dis¬ 
solved in oxalic acid. The most suitable proportions 
for preparing a durable solution are 8 parts of Prus¬ 
sian blue treated with sulphuric acid, 1 part of oxalic 
acid and 256 parts of water. 

Turnbull's blue. By mixing a solution of red prus¬ 
siate of potash with one of green copperas, the quan¬ 
tity of which, however, is insufficient for the decom¬ 
position of the red prussiate of potash, a precipitate 
consisting essentially of potassium ferro-ferric cyanide. 
According to Gintl, Turnbull’s blue is nothing but 
Prussian blue. 

Brunswick blue. This pigment is essentially a mix- 


PIGMENTS. 


81 


ture of Prussian blue and barytes. It is prepared by 
thoroughly mixing barytes with water, adding a solu¬ 
tion of copperas, then a solution of red or yellow prus- 
siate of potash, stirring constantly so as to ensure the 
thorough incorporation of the barytes with the blue. 
After filtering, washing and drying, the blue is ready 
for use. 

Prussian blues are characterized by their greenish- 
blue tint. Dry pure Prussian blue has a pure color 
and bronzy appearance. It is insoluble in water and 
is decomposed by alkaline solutions and concentrated 
acids as well as by heating. The lighter and looser it 
is, the better it is. In an air-dry state it still contains 
more than 20 per cent, of water. As a pigment it is 
quite permanent and resists exposure to the air, light, 
and most of the other influences which act on pig¬ 
ments. It has the curious property of fading a little 
on exposure to light and of recovering its original in¬ 
tensity of color in the absence of light. 

Prussian blue can be mixed with nearly all other 
pigments without being affected or changed by them 
or affecting them in any way. 

Cobalt blue. With the exception of smalt, which 
owes its color to a cobalt silicate, there are at least three 
pigments known under the name of cobalt blue. The 
best known of these is a combination of alumina and 
cobalt oxide; then comes Leith ner’s or Thenard’s blue, 
which is a cobalt phosphate on an aluminous base; 
lastly there is an aluminous cobalt arseniate very much 
like the phosphate. 

Smalt. By fusing zaflfre (impure cobalt oxide) to¬ 
gether with silica and potash, a deep blue glass is ob¬ 
tained which in a finely ground state is known as 
smalt. On a large scale smalt is prepared by fusing 
6 


82 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


partially roasted cobalt ores with a mixture of pow¬ 
dered quartz and pearl ash. A silicate of potash is 
thus formed in which the cobalt oxide dissolves with 
the formation of a bright blue color. The mass while 
still hot is thrown into water and is ground to powder 
under granite stones. The finely ground powder is 
brought into tubs filled with water and allowed to 
settle. By repeated grinding and washing the differ¬ 
ent varieties of smalt are prepared. The best kind of 
smalt, i. e., the one richest in cobalt, is called King’s or 
Royal blue. Smalt is principally used by paper Stain¬ 
ers, and to some extent as a pigment. The price var¬ 
ies according to the number and degree of fineness, 
some varieties, for instance, costing only $6.00 per 100 
lbs., while others cost as much as $45.00 per 100 lbs.* 

Thenar (V 8 blue , or Leithner's blue , may be prepared 
by mixing about 8 parts of aluminium hydrate with 1 
part of cobalt phosphate, both in a moist condition, 
then drying and strongly calcining the mixture; cobalt 
arseniate may be substituted for the phosphate. An¬ 
other variety of Thenard’s blue is obtained by adding 
sodium phosphate solution to a solution of alum con¬ 
taining a little cobalt sulphate. The materials used 
should be entirely free from iron and nickel to ensure 
the purity and beauty of the blue pigment formed. 

Caeruleum , cerulean blue. When oxide of tin is 
moistened with cobalt nitrate solution and strongly 
heated, a greenish blue mass is obtained, which, after 
powdering and washing, constitutes one of the vari¬ 
eties of the pigment known as caeruleum. There are 
other ways of preparing this substance. One of these 

* German prices, according to Heinzerling 11 C’hemische 
Teclinologie,” 1888. 




PIGMENTS. 


83 


consists in precipitating potassium stannate with 
cobalt chloride, collecting and washing the precipitate, 
and then mixing it with some pure silica and heat¬ 
ing it. 

Caeruleum is a permanent pigment of a rather green¬ 
ish-blue color, without any tendency to the violet cast, 
so noticeable with other cobalt blues when viewed by 
gas or candle-light. 

Mountain blue. This blue pigment, the azurite or 
blue malachite of mineralogists, is found native in 
large crystals belonging to the monoclinic system. It 
is essentially a basic carbonate of copper, and has the 
composition 2Cu0 3 .CuH 2 0 2 . For use as a pigment the 
mineral is ground up very fine. It is not much used. 

Brown Pigments. 

Umber. This pigment is one of the stand-byes of the 
painter. It owes its coloring to iron oxide and man¬ 
ganese oxide, and to the latter its drying property. 
Its other constituents are the same as ochre and 
sienna; in fact, these three pigments form a natural 
group of yellow to brown colors, having the ochres at 
one end of the scale and the umbers at the other, while 
between the two extremes all or nearly all the inter¬ 
mediate shades are found. 

Raw umber is found native in several localities; the 
best variety has come for some time past from Cyprus. 
In this country it is found in many places. It occurs 
in veins and layers, of varying thickness, in rocks of 
all geological ages. It varies somewhat in hue from a 
reddish-brown to a violet-brown, the latter line being 
characteristic of the Cyprus product, or Turkey umber , 
as it is generally called in commerce. For use as a 
pigment umber is finely ground, washed with water, 


84 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

and then dried at 212° F., or at a slightly higher tem¬ 
perature. 

Raw'umber is rarely adulterated, though barytes is 
sometimes added to make the grinding in the mill an 
easier task and to reduce the proportion of oil in the 
paste, the oil being the most costly element. 

Burnt umber is raw umber calcined at a red heat in 
a furnace, by which treatment the color becomes 
darker and warmer; the change which occurs being 
similar to that which ensues when ochres and siennas 
are calcined. 

Vandyke brown . This pigment was much esteemed 
and used by the celebrated painter Vandyke, whose 
name it bears. It is a species of peat or bog earth of a 
fine, deep, semi-transparent, brown color. Sometimes 
it is named after the locality in which it is found, as, 
for instance, Cassel earth. For use as a pigment such 
natural product simply requires to be ground as fine as 
possible. 

Vandyke brown is also prepared by slightly calcin¬ 
ing cork cullings and waste, bark and twigs of trees 
and other organic matter in a closed vessel. Such 
Vandyke brown has a warm brown color of a reddish 
hue. It mixes very well with oil and water, and can 
be used for all kinds of painting. 

Most of the common Vandyke browns are made by 
mixing together lampblack, vegetable black, or other 
black pigment, with red oxide and a little yellow ochre, 
the proportions used varying according to the quality 
and shade of the oxide used and whether ochre is also 
employed. Vandyke browns thus made, and contain¬ 
ing from 36 to 50 per cent, of black (chiefly lampblack), 
form the great bulk of these pigments as used by the 
house-painter. This variety of brown forms a perma¬ 
nent pigment, and works well in oil. 


PIGMENTS. 


85 


Cappagh brown , or euchrome , is a native manganese 
brown found at Cappagh, near Cork, Ireland. It is a 
bog earth, or peat, and contains ferric hydrate and 
ferric oxide, with a considerable amount of one of the 
oxides or hydrates of manganese. In composition and 
general character it resembles raw umber, but has a 
more reddish hue. 

Cappagh brown works well in oil, particularly if it 
be dried at a heat below that of boiling water before it 
is ground in oil. It is a permanent pigment. 

Manganese brown is an oxide of manganese, of a 
fine, deep, semi-opaque brown, of a good body, and 
dries well in oil. It is artificially prepared from the 
waste still-liquors of the chlorine manufacturer by pre¬ 
cipitating the liquors with sodium carbonate, collect¬ 
ing the precipitate and calcining in a furnace to a low 
red heat, until samples taken out and allowed to cool 
show the desired shade. It is a good and permanent 
pigment, but it is difficult to use on account of its ex¬ 
cessively strong drying properties. 

Sepia. This is a brown pigment, of slightly varying 
hue, and is obtained from various species of eephalo- 
podous animals, such as Sepia officinalis , S. loligo , etc. 
It is a blackish-brown pigment of a very fine texture, 
mixing well with both oil and water. It is much used 
by artists, especially for monochrome work. It is a 
fairly permanent pigment, being but little affected by 
exposure to light and air. 

Cologne earth is a soft, impure variety of brown coal 
or lignite. When slightly roasted a part of the brown 
organic matter in this earth is charred, or carbonized, 
and the substance becomes darker and duller, but also 
less alterable by exposure. 

Bone brown is made by gently calcining bones until 


86 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

they acquire a brown color. It resembles bone-black 
in composition, but contains some undecomposed ani¬ 
mal matter. It is not much used. 

Bistre. This pigment is prepared from the tarry 
soot of certain woods, especially from that of beech- 
wood, by the following process: The soot is finely 
ground and sifted and then the powder is digested 
with successive portions of hot water until the latter 
no longer acquires a brown or yellow tint. The wash¬ 
ings are then evaporated with suitable quantities of 
gum water and glycerin, and the residue preserved in 
a moist state. To form cake-bistre the glycerin is 
omitted, but more gum is employed. Bistre is not used 
as an oil color. It has a fine warm brown color of a 
yellowish hue. 

Black Pigments. 

Most of the black pigments in use are produced by 
charring, and owe their color to the carbon they con¬ 
tain. Such blacks are known under a variety ot 
names. Lamp-black, vegetable black, carbon black 
are almost, especially the last two, pure carbon, while 
animal-black, bone-black, ivory-black and Frankfort- 
black are blacks prepared from animal and vegetable 
matters and contain various other constituents besides 
carbon. All forms of carbon blacks are perfectly per¬ 
manent pigments, they being unsurpassed in this re¬ 
spect by any other pigment. They can be mixed with 
all other pigments without bringing about any alter¬ 
ation. 

Lamp-black. This is probably the most common 
and most used of the black pigments, and essentially 
is a kind of soot. When a combustible body such as 
oil, fat or grease is burnt under such conditions as to 


PIGMENTS. 


87 


preclude complete combustion, then a large volume of 
smoke is produced, and this deposits a black soot on 
any surface it may come in contact with. Such soot 
has a very black color, and is highly prized as a pig¬ 
ment. Lamp-black has derived its name from the fact 
that the earliest convenient means of producing this 
black was by burning oil in a lamp under conditions 
which would ensure that the combustible matter would 
not be completely burned. Very little lamp-black is 
now made in this way, chiefly because materials are 
now used in its preparation which cannot be burned 
with good results in a lamp. 

The materials used in the manufacture of lamp¬ 
black and vegetable-black are very varied, and com¬ 
prise American colophony, ozokerite and the combi¬ 
nations rich in carbon, which are obtained in the 
refining of petroleum and the distillation of brown 
coal. Further fish oil, ordinary or rancid vegetable 
oils, light and heavy coal tar oils, wood tar oils, 
greases, in fact anything that will yield a great 
deal of black smoke while burning, preference being 
given to those materials which are cheapest and least 
available for any other purpose. As regards the use of 
vegetable oil§ it may be mentioned that very rancid oil 
yields most carbon or soot, for experience has shown 
that such oil requires a larger quantity of oxygen for 
combustion without a sooting flame than non-rancid 
oil. 

The process of manufacture of lamp-black consists 
essentially in burning the material and collecting the 
soot. Hence the plant required for the purpose con¬ 
sists of two parts, viz., the space in which combustion 
takes place, and the parts which serve for collecting 
the soot (the soot chambers). 


88 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

The arrangements for the production of lamp-black 
vary according to the nature of the material to be 
used. Ifig. 5 shows Tlienius’ furnace for the produc¬ 
tion of lamp-black. The material used consists of the 
oil last obtained in the distillation of coal tar and freed 
as much as possible from naphthalene. In this fur¬ 
nace, in the compartment a is an iron plate which is 
constantly kept at a red heat. Upon this plate the oil 
is allowed to fall in drops through the pipe c. The oil 
is decomposed, the smoke (soot) passing through small 
apertures/into the chambers 1, 2, 8, 4. 



Fig. 5. 

• 

When the quantity of oil intended for decomposi¬ 
tion has been used, the furnace is allowed to stand 
quietly for a few days, when the windows cl, with which 
the chambers are provided, are opened. The finest 
quality of lamp-black is found in No. 4, a fine quality 
in No. 3, while Nos. 2 and 1 contain a coarser product; 
the two former qualities are sold as vegetable black, 
and the two latter as lamp-black. 

In this country a large quantity of lamp-black is 
produced by the combustion of the natural gas which 




















































PIGMENTS. 


89 


flows out of the ground in many of the oil regions. It 
is sold under the names of gas-black or carbon-black. 
The principle on which its manufacture is based is the 
cooling of the flames of the burning gas by iron plates. 
At first stationary plates with long trough-shaped 
upper surfaces were adopted, and were kept cool by 
means of a current of water. These plates being found 
subject to certain defects, they have now been replaced 
by revolving plates or cylinders, which, during the 
time the black is being deposited, automatically re¬ 
volve, and thus the black as it is formed is removed 
from the action of the flames and cannot be over¬ 
burnt, as was frequently the case with the old style of 
plates. As the plates or cylinders revolve they come 
into contact with fixed scrapers, which remove the 
black from the surface as fast as it is formed. Carbon- 
black differs from oil lamp-blacks in being granular in 
form and rather denser. It is blacker in hue than any 
of the other block pigments. For grinding this pro¬ 
duct, steel mills are preferable to stone mills. It is the 
purest form of carbon-black made, quite free from any 
trace of unburnt oil often present in lamp-blacks, and 
from any trace of mineral matter. 

Lamp-black is in the form of a black flocculent pow¬ 
der with a fine texture. In hue it is usually jet-black, 
although some samples have a faint brownish tinge. 
It has great coloring and covering powers. 11 is rather 
difficult to mix with various vehicles' especially with 
water, but, when mixed, it works well as a paint. It 
dries rather badly when used as an oil paint, especially 
when it contains unburnt oil. It consists almost en¬ 
tirely of carbon, but there is a small quantity of moist¬ 
ure and mineral matter present in all samples. 

Ivory black and bone black. These pigments are 


90 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

ivory and bone charred to blackness by strong heats 
in closed vessels. They vary very much, chiefly through 
want of'skill and care in preparing them. When well 
made they are fine neutral blacks, perfectly durable and 
eligible for oil and water painting; but when insuf¬ 
ficiently burned they are opaque and faint in color. 

Ivory black or bone black is made by exposing 
fragments and turnings of ivory and similar osseous 
parts of animals, to heat in close vessels until they are 
reduced to charcoal. When cool the hard carbonace¬ 
ous residue is pounded and ground with water, washed 
in a filter with water, and dried. 

Frankfort black is made from a great variety of ma¬ 
terials of an organic character, such as vine twigs, re¬ 
fuse of wine-making, peach stones, cork cuttings, bone 
shavings, etc. The materials are calcined in a close 
vessel until they are thoroughly charred. The black 
so obtained is then ground up as fine as possible with 
a little water. The mass is then lixiviated to free it 
from soluble matters and dried. It is then mixed with 
a little glue water and made up into pear-shaped drops, 
which are dried ahd are then ready for sale. Frank- 
. fort black is also known as drop black. It is a black 
of fine texture, varying in hue from a bluish-black to 
a somewhat reddish-black, which is due to the differ¬ 
ent materials of which it is made; vegetable matters 
yielding a black of a bluish hue, and animal matters 
one of a grayish tint. 

Besides the black pigments described above, there 
are several other substances known as Prussian black, 
black lake, tannin black, etc., which have been pro¬ 
posed as black pigments, but their use is so limited 
that it is not necessary to give a description of them. 


PIGMENTS. 


91 


TAKES. 

The name given to this series of red and other col¬ 
ored pigments is derived from the lac and lacca of In¬ 
dia. They may be defined to be compounds of an 
organic coloring principle with a metallic body. The 
organic coloring principle may be obtained from nat¬ 
ural coloring matters, such as lac, cochineal, Persian 
berries, fustic, Brazil wood, etc., and it maybe derived 
from the coal-tar colors, a source which only lately has 
come into prominence for lake making, but which 
promises to supplant the natural coloring matters for 
this purpose, as they have done for dyeing textile 
fabrics. 

The coloring principle of most natural coloring mat¬ 
ters is of an acid or phenolic character, and will combine 
with bases such as tin, aluminium, iron, lead, anti¬ 
mony, etc., to form colored bodies which are insoluble in 
water. As a rule, the affinity between the two bodies 
is so great that the lake is precipitated when a solution 
of a metallic salt is added to one of the coloring mat¬ 
ters. Theoretically, a lake should be a compound of 
the coloring principle and the metallic base in equiva¬ 
lent proportions, but practically such a lake does not 
exist, the base, as a rule, largely predominating. 

Lakes are usually made by preparing a decoction of 
the coloring matter and then adding to this a solution 
of the base, the lake, as a rule, forming almost at once. 
Sometimes the addition of a small quantity of a solu¬ 
tion of carbonate of soda is sufficient to throw down 
the lake. 

All lakes should be quite insoluble in any vehicle, 
such as water, oil, turpentine or spirit, used to make 
them into a paint. On the other hand, a true lake is 
always more or less transparent when used as a pig- 


92 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

ment, and lakes are, therefore, mostly used as covering 
or glazing colors to modify the tint of an under-coat 
of paint, and to obtain effects which are not possible 
with opaque pigments. Some lakes are rendered 
nearly opaque by mixing the materials during the 
process of manufacture with some opaque white pig¬ 
ment by which the body or covering power of the 
lake is increased, and at the same time the shade is 
more or less affected. If a lake dissolves in the vehicle, 
then all its properties as a pigment in regard to its 
body or covering power are lost, and a colored varnish 
only is obtained, which will not do the work it is in¬ 
tended that the lake-paint should do. 

Carmine is a combination of the coloring principle 
of cochineal with alumina and tin, and forms almost 
a pure lake. The statements regarding the preparation 
of carmine differ; the exact method of its preparation 
having never been published, and is probably only 
known to a few makers of this lake. According to 
one statement, cochineal is extracted by boiling in 
water, the decoction strained off, alum added to it, 
and the boiling is continued for a few minutes longer. 
The clear liquor is decanted off, cream of tartar added, 
and the mass allowed to stand for the carmine to settle. 

Another method is as follows : Boil 4 lbs. of cochi¬ 
neal in water, strain off the decoction, add 4 ounces of 
alum, 6 ounces of muriate of tin, 4 ounces of carbonate 
of soda, and allow to stand for two days, when the 
carmine will have been precipitated. 

Carmine is a deep fiery-scarlet powder, slightly vary¬ 
ing in tint. The best quality is known in commerce 
as “ nacarat carmine.” It is insoluble in water, alco¬ 
hol, ether, turpentine, and all the vehicles used in 
mixing paints, but is soluble in strong mineral acids. 


PIGMENTS. 


93 


Carmine lake. In preparing carmine the whole of 
the coloring matter of the cochineal is not precipitated, 
and, therefore, the liquors from the carmine are strongly 
colored and are utilized for the preparation of carmine 
lake. A small quantity of alum and of tin chloride 
is added to the liquor, and then sufficient solution of 
carbonate of potash to precipitate the whole of the 
alum and tin. The precipitate is collected, washed 
and dried. 

Another method is as follows: Boil 1 lb. coarsely 
powdered cochineal in 2 gallons of water for two 
hours. Decant, and strain the decoction, add the so¬ 
lution of 1 lb. of cream of tartar, and precipitate with 
solution of alum. By adding the alum first and pre¬ 
cipitating the lake with the cream of tartar, the color 
is slightly changed. 

Brazil ivood lake. Digest 2 lbs. of ground Brazil 
wood in 8 gallons of water for 24 hours, boil one-half 
hour, and add 3 lbs. of alum dissolved in as small a 
quantity of water as possible. Mix, decant and strain. 
Then add 1 lb. of tin solution, again mix well and 
filter. To the clear liquid cautiously add a solution of 
soda carbonate while a precipitate forms. The pre¬ 
cipitate is collected, washed and dried. 

Madder lake. Tie 4 ounces of madder in a cloth, 
beat it well in 1 quart of water in a stone mortar, and 
repeat the process with about 5 quarts of fresh water 
until the madder ceases to yield color. Boil the mixed 
liquors in an earthen vessel, pour them into a large 
basin and add 2 ounces of alum dissolved in 1 quart of 
boiling water. Stir well and gradually pour in 3 ozs. 
of a strong solution of carbonate of potash. Let stand 
until cold, pour off the supernatant yellow liquor, 
drain, agitate the residue repeatedly in 2 quarts of boil¬ 
ing water, decant, drain and dry. 


94 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Or: Macerate 2 lbs. of ground madder in 1 gallon of 
water for 10 minutes ; strain and press quite dry. Re¬ 
peat the operation twice or three times, and add to the 
mixed liquors J lb. of alum dissolved in three quarts 
of water. Heat in a water bath for 3 to 4 hours, con¬ 
stantly replacing the water lost by evaporation. Fil¬ 
ter first through flannel and when cold enough through 
paper. Add solution of carbonate of soda as long as a 
precipitate falls. Wash the latter till the water runs 
off colorless, and then dry. 

Yellow lakes. I. Boil 1 lb. of Persian berries, quer¬ 
citron bark, or turmeric, and 1 oz. of cream of tartar 
in 1 gallon of water until reduced to half the volume. 
Strain the decoction and precipitate by solution of 
alum. 

II. Boil 1 lb. of the above mentioned dye-stuffs with 
£ lb. of alum in water. Strain the liquor and add suffi¬ 
cient carbonate of potash to precipitate the lake. Care 
must be taken to avoid an excess of the alkali, as this 
would redissolve the coloring matter. 

Orange carmine or orange lake. Boil 2 lbs. of Per¬ 
sian berries in 2 gallons of water and strain the liquor. 
Then add J lb. of muriate of tin (commercial stannous 
chloride solution) and sufficient sodium carbonate to 
precipitate the lake. The latter is collected, washed 
and dried. 

Or: Best Spanish annatto 4 ozs., pearl ash | lb., 
water 1 gallon. Boil all for one-half hour, strain, pre¬ 
cipitate with alum 1 lb., dissolved in water 1 gallon. 
Do not add any more of the alum solution when it 
ceases to produce effervescence or a precipitate. The 
addition of a small quantity of solution of tin turns 
this lake a lemon yellow. 

Violet lake may be made by adding gallons of an- 


PIGMENTS. 


95 


timony chloride of 52° Tw. to each 16 gallons of a de¬ 
coction of logwood of 10° Tw. The lake is imme¬ 
diately precipitated, and is filtered, washed and dried. 

Aniline lakes. In the preparation of these lakes 
three things are chiefly required—1, the coloring mat¬ 
ter ; 2, the base, i. e ., a substance which gives covering 
power to the coloring matter, and 3, the precipitating 
agent. 

As coloring matter the basic and acid aniline colors 
may be used, the adjective coloring matters being 
more difficult to handle. As the base, barytes, gyp¬ 
sum, kaolin and zinc oxide may be employed, each of 
these substances, when used by itself, possessing cer¬ 
tain advantages and disadvantages. A mixture of 
barytes, gypsum and kaolin, however, answers very 
well for most aniline colors. Tannic acid, picric acid, 
acetate of lead, barium chloride and alumina sulphate 
serve as precipitating agents. 

The following colors are precipitated by tannic acid: 
Fuchsin, aniline blue, brilliant green, methyl green, 
Nile blue, rhodamine, safranin, phosphin, chrysoidin, 
Bismarck brown, methyl violet, chinoline yellow, and 
auramin. The use of tartar emetic in connection with 
tannic acid is of advantage, the shades of color becom¬ 
ing thereby deeper and the lakes less soluble than 
when precipitated with tannic acid alone. 

The colors which are precipitated by picric acid are: 
Auramin, methyl blue and brilliant green. 

Colors precipitated by acetate of lead : Scarlet BB, 
orange G, fast scarlet, scarlet 3R, yellow N, crocein 
orange, fast red T, alkaline blue, citronin, scarlet G 
and R, ponceau 2G, fast violet, orchil brown B, fast 
red, azo-yellow, double brilliant scarlet 2R, Indian 
’ yellow, crocein 3B, chinoline yellow, crystal scarlet 


96 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

6R, phosphine, scarlet OO, scarlet GT, Bordeaux S, 
and all the eosin colors. 

Colors precipitated by alumina sulphate: Scarlet 
BB, orange II, orange IV, fast scarlet 3R, crocein- 
orange, alkaline blue, Victoria blue B, citronin O, 
scarlet G, fast violet, orchil brown B, azo-yellow, In¬ 
dian yellow, and scarlet GT. 

Colors precipitated by barium chloride: Scarlet BB, 
ponceau, orange G, orange IV, fast scarlet 3R, yellow 
N, crocein-orange, crocein, fast red T, alkaline blue, 
Victoria blue B, citronin O and A, scarlet G, ponceau 
2R, resorcin-yellow, fast violet, orchil brown B, fast 
red A, double brilliant scarlet, chinoline-yellow, naph- 
thol-yellow S, phosphin, scarlet 2R, GT, 2RT, and 3R. 

Colors precipitated by tannic acid and picric acid 
can only be used as water colors, they drying with 
great difficulty when employed as oil-paints. Colors 
prepared with the assistance of acetate of lead, alum¬ 
ina sulphate and barium chloride can be used as water 
colors and oil-paints. 

The preparation of aniline lakes is quite a simple 
process. The base, barytes, china clay, or whatever 
is used, is thoroughly mixed or diffused through the 
requisite quantity of water, care being taken to break 
up all lumps, because these would give the lake a 
speckled appearance. The coloring matter previously 
dissolved in water is then added and the whole heated 
to from 120° to 150° F. The precipitating agent, in the 
form of solution, is then run in slowly with constant 
agitation. When all lias been run in, the lake is al¬ 
lowed to settle and the supernatant liquor drawn off. 
The latter should be colorless or nearly so. If it be 
strongly colored, the precipitation of coloring matter 
has not been complete, and more precipitant is added. 


PIGMENTS. 


97 


The lake is now washed by adding clean water. 
When required for pulp-colors, the lake is simply fil¬ 
tered off, but if required dry, it is dried at as low a 
temperature as possible, to prevent its color or tint 
being affected. 

The proportions of the various substances used may 
be seen from the following examples : 

Fuchsin lake. Barytes or another base 200 parts by 
weight, magenta 2, tartar emetic 3, tannic acid 0. 

Green lake. Barytes or another base 200 parts by 
weight, brilliant green 2, auramin 1, tartar emetic 2, 
tannic acid 6. 

The tartar emetic mixed with coloring matter is 
added to the base, and then the tannic acid solution. 

Scarlet lake. Barytes or another base 100 parts by 
weight, fast scarlet 3, acetate of lead 10. 

Green lake. Barytes or another base 100 parts by 
weight, crystal green 1, picric acid 1. 

Yellow lake. Barytes or another base 100 parts by 
weight, Indian yellow 3, barium chloride 5. 

By using mixtures of the coloring matters in various 
proportions, a great variety of lakes of different colors 
can be prepared. 

Vermillionettes and royal reds. These lakes have 
recently been introduced in practice. They are made 
in a great variety of tints, from a very pale pinkish 
red to a very deep scarlet. Vermillionettes are now 
made from barytes and eosine, with a precipitating 
agent, although when first introduced they contained 
orange lead as well, and some makers mix them so 
now. Royal reds contain both barytes and orange lead, 
as well as the eosine. The precipitating agent most 
used is acetate of lead. 

The following receipts for preparing several shades 
7 


98 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

of these pigments exemplify the quantities of the nm 
terials used: 


Vermillionettes. 

No. I, Pale. No. II, Deep. No. Ill, Deep. 
Parts by weight. Parts by weight. Parts by weight. 


Barytes ... 100 100 100 

Orange lead .30 30 — 

Eosine ... 2 6 8 

Lead acetate. 6 16 20 

Royal Reels. 

No. I, Pale. No. II. Deep. 

Parts by Weight. Parts by Weight. 

Orange lead. 100 100 

Eosine. 4 8 


Lead acetate .... 10 20 

Vermillionettes and royal reds are very brilliant in 
hue and have a good depth of color, whether used as 
oil-paints or water colors. They do not resist length¬ 
ened exposure to light and air, and, therefore, cannot 
be recommended for work which must have perma¬ 
nence. However, when protected by a coat of varnish 
they will stand a good deal of exposure. 




GRINDING AND WASHING COLOURS. 


99 


GRINDING AND WASHING COLOURS 

The following directions for the grinding of colours 
will be found of use to those who may not find it conve¬ 
nient to have a mill for the purpose, such as that we 
have described in a former part of our work. 

In grinding, place yourself in such a situation, with 
respect to the grinding-stone, that you may be able with 
ease to exercise the full length and strength of your 
arms in the use of the muller. Then place upon the 
stone a small quantity of the colour you are about to 
grind, not above two-thirds of a common saucer full at 
most. Novices are apt to entertain an idea that the 
work would be hastened by grinding a great deal at once, 
but this is a mistake. The less you grind at a time the 
easier will be the process and the finer the colour. One 
of the most essential points in the preparation of a co¬ 
lour is its being reduced into as small parts as possible. 
The beauty of its appearance and the profit arising from 
it equally depend upon this: and a good workman will 
not therefore grudge the time employed in the operation. 
When you have laid your colour on the stone, pour upon 
it a little of the oil or varnish with which you intend 
to grind it, being careful not to put too much at first 


100 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISH ER. 

Mix the oil and the colour together; then place the 
muller upon them, and turn it a few times about. If 
you find there is not oil enough, add a little more, and 
continue to grind till the colour becomes of the consist¬ 
ence of an ointment. Be careful not to add too much 
oil, so as to make the colour too thin and cause it to run 
about the stone; for then it will be necessary to add 
more solid matter, which would occasion a great waste of 
time and labour. When the colour is rendered thinner 
than it should be, the grinding is less fatiguing, but it 
occupies more time; when thicker, the work is more 
laborious, but more speedily executed. Experience will 
teach you to judge correctly in this matter. 

Should the colour spread during the grinding, you 
must bring it together with your palette-knife or voider. 
When you have ground it sufficiently fine, which you 
may determine by the difficulty of raising the muller 
from the stone, and by the noise occasioned by the grind¬ 
ing at first almost entirely subsiding, take up the muller: 
then if you find the colour completely smooth like but¬ 
ter, without any grittiness, take it off the stone with a 
palette-knife or spatula, and put it into your pot or pan. 
Afterwards lay more colour upon the stone, and continue 
grinding in the same manner till the necessary quantity 
is ground. 

It is always desirable to grind at one time as much 
of a colour as is required for the work you have in hand: 
if you prepare it at intervals, in different quantities, you 
will often find some difficulty in procuring exactly the 
same shade or tint; and if you fail in this, the appear- 


GRINDING AND WASHING COLOURS. 


101 


ance of the work will be sadly disfigured. Should any 
colour happen to be left which you are desirous of pre¬ 
serving, you have only to cover it with water and deposit 
it in a cool place. It is likewise advisable to take the 
same precaution with your colours, if you have occasion 
to rest for a time, as it will prevent their drying, even 
in the hottest weather. 

It is not unusual with painters and varnishers, who 
have much business, to grind or prepare at once quan¬ 
tities of different colours or varnishes sufficient to serve 
them for a long while. These, as the best mode of pre¬ 
serving them, they keep tied up close in ox or sheep 
bladders, so as to be always ready when wanted. 

Colours that are of a coarse and sandy nature can 
seldom be ground to a proper degree of fineness. Where 
common work only is required, this is not very material : 
but in cases where superior delicacy is necessary, such 
colours, after being ground, must undergo the operation 
of washing. 

The chief of these are yellow ochre, charcoal, bone- 
black, Spanish brown, red lead, white chalk, verditer, 
and Saxon blue. 

In washing colours, put the quantity you wish to clean 
into a vessel of clear water, and stir it till the water be¬ 
comes coloured; skim off any filth you observe swim¬ 
ming at the top; and when you think the grossest pari 
of the colour is settled at the bottom, pour off the water 
into a second vessel, large enough to hold four or five 
times as much water as the first; then pour some more 
water into the first vessel, and proceed as before. Keep 


102 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

repeating this till you find all the fine part of the colour 
drawn off, and none but the gritty particles remaining 
in the bottom of the first vessel. Let the water in the 
larger vessel stand till it be quite clear and all the co¬ 
lour settled at the bottom ; then pour the water off from 

it, and the colour at the bottom, when completely dried , 

* 

will be fit for use. 

Colours, whether you grind them yourself, as above 
directed, or purchase them ready ground, will, in that 
state, be too thick for use, and it will be necessary to 
dilute them with the varnish or oil you propose to em¬ 
ploy, in order to bring them to a proper consistence. 
In doing this, extremes must be carefully avoided. If 
the colour be made too thin, it runs, and does not cover 
the article to be painted equally or exactly ; if too thick, 
it forms lumps, is hard to spread, occasions more expense, 
disfigures the work, and fatigues the hand which applies 
it. If, when the brush is taken from the pot and 
turned two or three times round in the hand, being held 
obliquely, so as to check the thread which is formed, the 
colour do not drop from it, it will then be as stiff as it 
can be well wrought with; and this is the proper state 
for use, as both expedition and durability are gained by 
it. If it be thin enough to allow the ground on which it 
is laid to be at all seen through it, it cannot be good ; and 
though it may work more easily at the time, it will re¬ 
quire repeated coatings to make it perfect and substan¬ 
tial, when one of a proper thickness would have been 
sufficient. 1 may here remark, that many jobs being 
contracted for by painters at so much a yard, and the 


GRINDING AND WASHING COLOURS. 


103 


work to be coloured three times over , some are iu the 
habit, with a view of sparing paint and labour, of mak¬ 
ing their colourings so thin as not to be altogether equal 
to one good coating. But this is a practice which no 
tradesman, who values his own character or that of the 
work turned out of his hands, will adopt. 


104 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


4 iP>' 



COMPOUND COLOURS, OILS, AND VAR- 


NISPIES. 


The various colours that may be obtained by the mix* 
ture of other colours, are innumerable. I only propose 
here to give the best and simplest modes of preparing 
those most frequently required. 

Compound colours, formed by the union of only two 
colours, are called by painters virgin tints. 

The smaller the number of colours of which any com¬ 
pound colour is composed, the purer and the richer it 
will be. 

Light Gray is made by mixing white lead with lamp¬ 
black, using more or less of each material, as you wish 
to obtain a lighter or a darker colour. 

Buff is made from yellow ochre and white lead. 

Silver } or Pearl Gray .—Mix white lead, indigo, and 
a very slight portion of black, regulating the quantities 
by the shade you wish to obtain. 

Flaxen Gray is obtained by a mixture of white lead 
and Prussian blue, with a small quantity of lake. 

Brick colour .—Yellow ochre and red lead, with a little 
white. 

Oak-wood colour. —Three-fourths white lead, and one- 
fourth part umber and yellow ochre : the proportions of 
the last two ingredients being determined by the re¬ 
quired tints. 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


105 


Walnut-tree colour. —Two-thirds white lead, and one 
third red ochre, yellow ochre, and umber, mixed accord¬ 
ing to the shade sought. If veining is required, use 
different shades of the same mixture, and, for the deepest 
places, black. 

Jonquil. —Yellow, pink, and white lead. This colour 
is only proper for distemper. 

Lemon Yellow .—Realgar and orpiment. Some object 
to this mixture, on account of the poisonous nature of 
the ingredients. The same colour can be obtained by 
mixing yellow-pink with Naples yellow; but it is then 
only fit for distemper. 

Orange colour .—Red lead and yellow ochre. 

Violet colour. —Vermilion, or red lead, mixed with 
black or blue, and a small portion of white. Vermilion 
is far preferable to red lead, in mixing this colour. 

Purple. —Dark-red mixed with violet-colour. 

Carnation .—Lake and white. 

Gold colour. —Massicot, or Naples yellow, with a 
small quantity of realgar, and a very little Spanish 
white. 

Olive colour .—This may be obtained by various mix¬ 
tures : black and a little blue, mixed with yellow; yel¬ 
low-punk, with a little verdigris and lampblack ; or ochre 
and a small quantity of white, will also produce a kind 
of olive colour. For distemper, indigo and yellow-pink 
mixed with white lead or Spanish white, must be used. 
If veined, it should be done with umber. 

Lead colour .—Indigo and white. 

Chestnut colour .—Red ochre and black, for a dark 


106 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


chestnut. To make it lighter, employ a mixture of 
yellow ochre. 

Light Timber colour. —Spruce ochre, white, and a 
little umber. 

Flesh colour. —Lake, white lead, and a little vermilion. 

Light Willow Green. —White mixed with verdigris. 

Grass Green. —Yellow-pink mixed with verdigris. 

An endless variety of greens can be obtained by the 
mixture of blue and yellow in different proportions, with 
the occasional addition of white lead. 

Stone colour. —White, with a little spruce ochre. 

Dark Lead colour. —Black and white, with a little 
indigo. 

Fawn colour. —White lead, stone ochre, and a little 
vermilion. 

Chocolate colour. —Lampblack and Spanish brown. 
On account of the fatness of the lampblack, mix some 
litharge and red lead. 

Portland Stone colour. —Umber, yellow ochre, and 
white lead. 

The variety of shades of brown that may be obtained, 
are nearly as numerous as those of green. 

To imitate Mahogany. —Let the first coat of painting 
be white lead, the second orange, and the last burned 
umber or sienna; imitating the veins according to your 
taste and practice. 

To imitate Wainscot. —Let the first coat be white, the 
second half white and half yellow ochre, and the third 
yellow ochre only. Shadow with umber or sienna. 

To imitate Satin Wood. —Take white for your first 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


107 


coating, light blue for the second, and dark blue or 
dark green for the third. 


OILS. ' 

We come, next, to speak of the principal oils which are 
used in the preparation both of colours and varnishes. 

Oil of Spike was formerly much more in use than it 
is at present. It is a volatile oil, and has the advantage 
of drying more speedily than any of the fat oils; it is 
also free from any offensive odour. It is, however, 
generally in a very impure state; and of this painters 
are so thoroughly convinced, that they have pretty gene¬ 
rally renounced it. In all preparations for varnishes, 
where it is directed to be employed, oil of turpentine, 
which is much cheaper, can be substituted without any 
other inconvenience than what may arise from its 
stronger smell. 

Oil of Lavender is principally used by enamellers, to 
whom it is particularly valuable, from its consistency 
being such as to prevent the colours that are mixed with 
it from running. Its property of drying more equally 
and gradually than perhaps any other oil, renders it also 
of service- to the varnisher. 

Oil of Poppies has one advantage possessed by no 
other—that of being perfectly colourless For this rea¬ 
son, a decided preference is given to it for delicate kinds 
of painting. Being, however, extremely fat, it is liable, 
unless very old, to the objection of being insufferably 
tedious in drying. 


108 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Nut Oil and Linseed Oil , both in very general use t 
rank among the fat oils. Their fatness, indeed, is so 
great, that it is mostly found necessary, before employ¬ 
ing them in colouring, to give them a drying quality, 
which may be done in the following manner:—Take 
three parts of white vitriol, and twelve parts of litharge, 
and let them be reduced to as fine a powder as possible ; 
then mix them with thirty-two parts of nut or linseed 
oil, and place the mixture over a fire just brisk enough 
to keep the oil slightly boiling. Let it continue to boil, 
till the oil entirely ceases to throw up any scum. Then 
take the vessel off the fire, and let it stand in a cool 
place for about three hours, and a sediment, which con¬ 
tains the fattening part of the oil, will be formed at the 
bottom. Pour off the oil which is above (being careful 
not to let any of the sediment mix with it) into wide- 
mouthed bottles. Let it remain a sufficient time to clear 
itself perfectly, before it is used, and you will find it 
possessed of the proper drying quality. 

Sometimes, when the fire is not kept pretty equal 
while the boiling is going on, the colour of the oil is 
affected, so as to render it unfit for delicate painting. 
To avoid this, some persons tie up the litharge and 
vitriol, when powdered, in a bag; but, in this case, the 
quantity of litharge must be doubled. The bag must 
also be suspended by a piece of packthread to a stick 
made to rest upon the edges of the vessel, so as to keep 
the bag at the distance of an inch from the bottom. 
This method, too, is slower than that of boiling the dry¬ 
ing material along with the oil. 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 109 

In some kinds of work, such as the preparation of 
ttoor-cloths, and painting large figures or ornaments, in 
which clayey colours are employed, an extraordinary 
rapidity in drying is sometimes necessary, which could 
not be procured by using the proportions of drying ma¬ 
terials above mentioned. In such cases, it is customary 
to increase the quantity of litharge in any proportion 
that may be requisite. On some occasions, the litharge 
employed has amounted to one-fourth part of the whole 
quantity of oil. 

The process used for giving a drying quality to nut 
and linseed oil will not do for oil of poppies, which would 
thereby be deprived of its colourless property, the most 
valuable one which it possesses. 

Many painters consider it a matter of indifference 
whether nut or linseed oil be employed in colouring, and 
therefore, for the sake of cheapness, give the preference 
to the latter. But they labour under a mistake; for these 
two oils should, by no means, be used indiscriminately. 
In painting which is allowed to be coarse, or which is 
sheltered from the effects of the rain and sun, linseed oil 
will answer the purpose. But where any nicety is re¬ 
quired in colouring, in situations exposed to the weather, 
nut oil only is proper, as it nourishes and develops the 
Colour; whereas linseed oil dissipates and destroys it, and 
obliges the work to be done afresh in a short time. In 
painting exposed to weather, persons aware of the im¬ 
propriety 1- of using linseed oil, are sometimes induced to 
mix a portion of oil of turpentine with nut oil, to save 
cost; but this mixture has almost as injurious an effect 


110 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

in whitening colour which is exposed to the sun, as pure 
linseed oil. 

I have before said that linseed oil will serve for paint¬ 
ing that is not exposed to the rain and sun. This is not, 
however, the case when a pure white is wanted, for lin¬ 
seed oil has the effect of turning the white lead yellow, 
and nut oil should therefore be employed. If that is 
considered too expensive, one part of turpentine, at least, 
ought to be mixed with two parts of linseed oil. 

Oil of Turpentine is more used than any of the pre¬ 
ceding oils; the varnisher, indeed, scarcely employs any 
other. There is a great difference in the quality. The 
inferior kinds, though they may serve for mixing coarse 
and common colours, can never be used with good effect 
in varnish. The best description is that which is the 
lightest and least coloured. A simple method of trying 
its degree of goodness is with the best spirits of wine, 
which will take up about one-third part of the weight 
of the inferior sort of oil, and only about a seventh or 
eighth part of the best kinds. 

Fat oils are often mixed with the oil of turpentine, 
as well as with other volatile oils—a mixture particularly 
hurtful in the case of varnishes. There is a remarkable 
distinction, however, between the two, by which such 
adulterations may be always readily detected. Both 
sorts of oil stain paper,—but a stain from a volatile oil 
may be easily removed by heat, while one from fixed oils 
remains almost indelible. Thus, if a drop of common 
oil be thrown on paper, and held near a fire, a part flies 
off; but, before the whole of it can be dissipated, the 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. Ill 

paper is destroyed. If, on the contrary, a few drops of 
turpentine (or any other volatile oil) be thrown on paper 
and treated in the same way, the stain disappears with¬ 
out the texture of the paper being in the smallest degree 
injured. And if paper be stained with an oil com¬ 
pounded partly of a volatile and partly of a fat oil, that 
portion only which is volatile will evaporate on exposure 
to heat, while the other will remain. 

It is owing to the property just mentioned, that vola¬ 
tile oils are sometimes employed to make transparent 
paper for copying drawings. 

For this purpose, the paper is besmeared with pure 
volatile oil of turpentine, and dried for a short time, by 
exposure to air; it is then put on the drawing, the traces 
of which are distinctly seen through it. After taking 
off the copy by a pencil, the oil is easily expelled by 
holding the paper near the fire. 

Drying Oils , which are composed of particular sub¬ 
stances mixed with some of the oils before mentioned, 
are useful for several purposes. They are most valuable 
when so manufactured as to be colourless. They are 
much used in preparing varnishes; and, in oil painting, 
are not unfrequently employed as a varnish, either alone 
or diluted with a little oil of turpentine. Drying oil is 
easily procured at the shops; but, if you wish to make 
it yourself, one of the best methods is to take a pound of 
nut or linseed oil, (according as it is intended for inside 
or outside work,) to which a drying quality has been 
given by the method before mentioned; dissolve in it 
five ounces of rosin by means of a gentle heat; when 


112 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARN1BHER. 

this is done, add to it rather more than half an ounce of 
turpentine: let the composition rest till a sediment is 
formed and is quite cool; then pour it, free from any 
part of the sediment, into proper vessels, and make use 
of it while fresh. If at any time it should become toe 
thick, you may dilute it with a little oil of turpentine. 

Some painters of ornaments, and coach painters, in* 
stead of using drying oils, content themselves with add¬ 
ing white vitriol in mixing their colours. This method 
is bad; the salt of the vitriol will not unite with the 
oil, and the painting, in consequence, becomes mealy, 
and sometimes cracks. 

When drying oil is colourless, it is of great use to 
painters of pictures, by whom, as well as by the house 
painter, it is not unfrequently used as varnish, either in 
a pure or dilute state. 

It has been recently discovered, that when a solution 
of yellow soap is added to red, yellow, and black paints, 
when ground in oil, before they are casked up, they 
acquire no improper hardness, and dry remarkably fast 
when laid on with the brush, without having recourse 
to any of the usual drying expedients. 

Pilchard Oil, which possesses more greasy matter than 
any other fish oil, has been used in Cornwall for the last 
fifty years, to great advantage, in coarse painting. The 
preparation is said, by a correspondent in the Mechanics’ 
Magazine , (vol. vi., page 471,) to be made in the fol¬ 
lowing manner: Put the oil into a clean iron pot, and 
place it over a slow fire, (wood is best,) to prevent it 
from burning; when it begins to heat, skim it well; let 


113 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 

il remain on the fire till it singes a feather put therein. 
For every gallon of oil, add a small table-spoonful of red 
litharge. Stir them together well for about three 
minutes; then take the pot off the fire, and let the mix¬ 
ture cool in the open air, after which it is fit for use. 
It is said to dry quickly, to incorporate well with any 
coloured paint on wood or iron, to have all the appear¬ 
ance of varnish, and to be extremely durable. 

VARNISHES. 

Strictly speaking, every substance, whether dry or 
liquid, is a varnish, which, being spread over any body, 
has the effect of giving its surface a brilliant appearance. 
But, in its general meaning, the term is only applied to 
those substances that are capable of rendering this effect 
durable. 

The foundation of all varnishes are gummy and resin¬ 
ous substances; and the only liquids that can be com¬ 
bined with them, so as to form varnishes, are oils and 
spirit of wine. 

For a varnish to be really good, it ought to be limpid, 
brilliant, transparent, and durable. The durability of a 
varnish is its greatest and rarest excellence. 

The principal gums and resins used for varnishes are 
gum Arabic, gum elastic, gum anima, copal, dragon's 
blood, stick-lac, shell-lac, and mastic. The solvents 
chiefly employed are spirits of wine and spirits of tur- 
uentine. 

[n choosing gums and resins, those are to be preferred 
8 


114 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

which are quite free from particles of dirt, and of which 
the lumps, when held up to the light, present a clear and 
transparent appearance. 

What is often sold at the shops as gum Arabic—the 
best of all the gums—is frequently only the clearer 
pieces of the gum Senegal, which, though equally strong 
and substantial, is far from being so pure as gum Arabic. 
The imposition may be detected by observing one very 
obvious distinction. The genuine gum Arabic is always 
in small irregular masses, smooth on the outside; the 
pieces of the gum Senegal are invariably larger, and 
rough on the outside. 

A composition of different resins, coloured with brick- 
dust or Brazil-wood, or a very small portion of real dra¬ 
gon’s blood, is not unfrequently sold as genuine. It is 
of a dull red or brick colour, whereas real dragon’s blood 
is a dark red, and almost brown colour on the outside. 
The latter, too, is inflammable; while the imitation, 
when put into the fire, does not inflame, but swells up. 

The liquid commonly sold under the name of spirits 
of wine is in general a highly-rectified spirit, interme¬ 
diate between proof spirit and alcohol, but not suffi¬ 
ciently concentrated for the purpose of making varnish. 
The readiest practicable method of determining whether 
the alcohol will answer your purpose, is to fill a large 
phial with it, and then to drop into it a small lump of 
potash or pearlash, which has been heated very hot over 
the fire, to expel its moisture, and not afterwards suf¬ 
fered to become cold: the phial is then to be well 
shaken, and if the lump remain dry, or nearly so, the 


115 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 

alcohol is good ; if any considerable portion of it remain 
undissolved, it is unfit for use. 

Spirits of turpentine are always good in proportion to 
their inflammability—that which burns most readily 
being the best. The smell, too, of the inferior kind 
is more unpleasant and less powerful than that of the 
better sort. 

When doubts are entertained as to its purity, pour 
about two table-spoonfuls into a saucer, and place it to 
evaporate in the sun, which it ought to do entirely in the 
course of two or three hours; if a greasy residuum or a 
soft, sticky mucus is left, it is a proof that the turpentine 
is adulterated, and ought to be rejected. 

Another method of judging of the comparative good¬ 
ness of different sorts both of spirits of wine and spirits 
of turpentine, is by weighing quantities of two kinds, 
equal in measure, one against the other: the lightest is 
always the best. 

The number of different varnishes to be obtained by 
various methods of mixing together the substances from 
which they can be manufactured, is endless, and it would 
be altogether from the purpose and nature of this little 
work to attempt any thing like a description of them. 
Many of them, indeed, are only useful to the artist, and 
are therefore not entitled to a place here; while others aie 
merely proofs of the ingenuity of chemical students, and, 
from the expense or sacrifice of time attending their pre¬ 
paration, are not adapted for practical purposes. Almost 
every varnisher, too, has at least one or two composi¬ 
tions peculiar to himself, the superior value of which 


116 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

rests chiefly in his own opinion. In large towns and 
cities, moreover, the varnishes in common use can easily 
be purchased ready made; but for the benefit of those 
who may not have this convenience, or who prefer pre¬ 
paring their own varnishes, I shall here add a few simple 
recipes, from modern and approved sources, for making 
those that are in the most general use. 


Sliell-lac Varnish. 

The best of the common spirit varnishes is that made 
with shell-lac. Hitherto the use of it has been limited, in 
consequence of its possessing a brown-yellowish colour, 
which made it unfit for all articles which that tint would 
injure ) but Professor Hare, of Philadelphia, has made 
the arts a valuable present of the following method of 
producing it perfectly colourless : Dissolve, in an iron 
kettle, one part of pearlash in about eight parts of water; 
add one part of shell-lac, and heat the whole to ebullition. 
When the lac is dissolved, cool the solution, and impreg¬ 
nate it with chlorine till the lac is all precipitated. The 
precipitate is white, but its colour deepens by washing 
and consolidation; dissolved in alcohol, lac bleached by 
the above process yields a varnish which is as free from 
colour as any copal varnish. Chlorine (oxy-muriatic 
acid) may be formed by mixing intimately eight parts 
of common salt and three of the black oxide of manga¬ 
nese in powder: put this mixture into a retort; then 
pour four parts of sulphuric acid, diluted with an equal 
weight of water and afterwards allowed to cool, upon 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 117 

the salt and manganese 3 the gas will then be immediately 
liberated, and the operation may be quickened by a mo¬ 
derate heat. A tube leading from the mouth of the 
retort must be passed into the resinous solution, when 
the gas will be absorbed, and the lac precipitated. 

It is to be presumed that, now that shell-lac varnish 
is thus rendered universally applicable, it will be the 
most used of any; as it possesses all the properties of a 
good spirit varnish in a higher degree than any of the 
other resins, and costs at the same time much less. 

Shell-lac Varnish of various colours maybe made by 
using any colour in fine powder with the varnish, in the 
following manner : Rub up the colour with a little alco¬ 
hol, or spirits of turpentine, till it becomes perfectly 
smooth; then put it into the cup with the varnish. 

Reel Shell-lac Varnish 

Is best made from good Dutch sealing-Avax (which is 
itself chiefly composed of seed lac). This is the lac used 
to varnish glass or wood for electrical purposes. Three 
or four coats will make a perfect covering. 

Turpentine Varnish. 

Take five pounds of clear good rosin, pound it well 
and put it into a gallou of oil of turpentine; boil the 
mixture over a stove, till the rosin is perfectly dissolved; 
and when cool, it will be fit for use. 


118 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Linseed Oil Varnish. 

Boil any quantity of linseed oil for an hour, and to 
every pouud of oil add four ounces of good clear rosin, 
well powdered; keep stirring it till the rosin is per¬ 
fectly dissolved, and when this is done, add one ounce of 
spirits of turpentine for every pound of oil, and when 
strained and cool, it will be fit for use. 

This varnish is much used for common purposes. It 
is cheap, is a good preservative of w r ood, and not liable 
to sustain injury from the application of hot water. 

Copal Varnish. 

Take one ounce of copal and half an ounce of shell- 
lac; powder them well, and put them into a bottle or 
jar containing a quart of spirits of wfine. Place the 
mixture in a warm place, and shake it occasionally, till 
you perceive that the gums are completely dissolved, 
and when strained, the varnish will be fit for use. 

1 have given the above as the simplest, and therefore 
the most usual method of making common copal varnish; 
but it may be prepared in a variety of ways, where par¬ 
ticular uses may be required. 

Gold-coloured Copal Varnish. 

Take one ounce of powdered copal, two ounces of 
essential oil of lavender, and six ounces of essence of 
turpentine. Put the oil of lavender into a matras of a 


119 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 

proper size, placed on a sand bath subjected to a mode- 
rate heat. When the oil is very warm, add the copal 
from time to time, in very small quantities, and stir the 
mixture with a stick of white wood, rounded at the end. 
When the copal has entirely disappeared, put in the 
turpentine in almost a boiling state, at three different 
times, and keep continually stirring the mixture till the 
solution is quite completed. 

When this varnish is required to be colourless, as is 
frequently the case, it will be necessary to use the rec¬ 
tified spirit of turpentine—the common essence sold at 
the shops being generally high-coloured 

Camphorated Copal Varnish. 

Take copal in powder, four ounces; essential oil of 
lavender, twelve ounces; camphor, a quarter of an ounce, 
and as much spirit of turpentine as will give the varnish 
the consistency required. Heat the oil and the camphor 
in a small matras, stirring them, and putting in the 
copal and turpentine in the manner directed in the 
preceding varnish. 

This varnish is particularly well adapted for articles 
which require transparency and pliability, united to great 
durability, such as the varnished wire-gauze used in 
ships instead of glass. 

Copal Varnish in Imitation of Tortoise-Shell. 

Take of amber-coloured copal, six ounces; of shell-lac 
or Venice turpentine, an ounce and a half; twenty-four 


120 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

ounces of clear linseed oil, and six ounces of essence of 
turpentine. Place the copal in a matras, and expose it 
to a moderate heat till it is liquefied; then add the linseed 
oil in a boiling state, afterwards the shell-lac or Venice 
turpentine, also liquefied, and lastly the spirit of turpen¬ 
tine in small portions. If the varnish prove too thick, 
dilute it with spirit of turpentine. 

This varnish is principally used for watch-cases, though 
it is also applied to other imitations of tortoise-shell. 

All the above methods, however, of preparing copal 
require long boiling and careful filtering in the prepara¬ 
tion, and consequently are not so convenient as the pro¬ 
cess first mentioned: they are therefore seldom used, 
unless where the nature of the substance to be varnished 
renders oil of turpentine decidedly preferable to spirits 
of wine. 

An excellent copal varnish may be made by putting 
an ounce of copal of an amber colour, finely powdered, 
into a flask containing four ounces of ether; corking the 
mixture with a glass stopper, and shaking it for half an 
hour; then allowing it to rest till the liquor becomes 
perfectly clear. 

It is unfortunate that the great volatility of ether and 
its very high price do not allow’ the use of this varnish 
for common purposes. Indeed, its employment is almost 
confined to repairing accidents in enamel, and restoring 
the smooth surface of paintings that have been cracked 
or shattered. It has some admirable properties, wdiicb 
belong to no other varnish in existence. It presents 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 121 

great resistance to the friction of hard bodies, possesses 
remarkable solidity, has a peculiar drying quality / and 
a very fragrant smell. 

Copal, and other varnishes, prepared with essence of 
turpentine, will not admit of being applied to purely 
white grounds, unless the turpentine has been highly 
rectified; and even then it is not unattended with risk. 
For coloured grounds, which require solidity, they are 
excellent. 

The varnishes prepared with copal are some of the 
most useful and valuable known, and their composition 
has been much improved of late years. They are rich, 
splendid, and solid, bear friction well, and are of great 
service in preserving articles exposed to damp or rain. 
Mathematical and philosophical instruments are gene¬ 
rally varnished with them. 


Amber Varnish. 

Put eight ounces of amber, finely powdered, into a 
vessel containing half a pint of the best spirits of tur¬ 
pentine; (if for very fine purposes, rectified spirits of 
turpentine should be used;) place the vessel over a 
stove or fire till the amber is quite melted; then put 
it into two ounces of shell-lac powdered, and place it on 
the fire again; keep stirring it till the gum is completely 
dissolved, and then add to the whole an ounce of clear 
cold-drawn linseed oil. Stir it well together, and when 
strained, it will be fit for use. 

Like copal varnish, this varnish may likewise be pre- 


122 


PAINTER, CIILDER, AND YARNISHER. 

pared in various ways; but the one here given is the 
cheapest and readiest, and the other methods of making 
it do not in any case possess advantages over this. 
Some varnishers prefer using more spirits of turpentine 
and a smaller proportion of linseed oil. 

Some years since, amber varnish was in very general 
use; but of late, copal, on account of its being less 
coloured, has obtained a preference. 

Caoutchouc , or Gum-elastic Varnish. 

Take eight ounces of gum-elastic, pound it well, and 
put it upon the fire, in a vessel containing half a pound 
of boiling linseed oil. When the gum is dissolved, add 
half a pound of spirits of turpentine. Let them continue 
boiling together till the mixture becomes clear; and 
when it is cool, strain it for use. 

This varnish is brilliant and durable; but it has the 
fault of drying very slowly, for which reason it is not 
employed. 


Mastic Varnish. 

This varnish, which is used principally for pictures in 
oil, is usually prepared by dissolving the mastic in spirits 
of turpentine, by means of a sand-bath, then straining it 
through a fine sieve, and afterwards placing it, for two 
or three weeks, in a bottle well corked, where the light 
of the sun may act freely upon it, which causes a large 
precipitation of mucilaginous matter, and leaves the var¬ 
nish as clear as water. But to procure a mastic varnish 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


123 


that can be perfectly depended upon, the following ob 
servations must be attended to : Let all the mastic be 
bruised by a muller on a grinding-stone; this will sepa¬ 
rate the soft or oily tears, as they are called, and enable 
you to throw them aside : whereas, if the mastic is put in 
a mass into the turpentine, the tears remain imbodied 
with it, and prevent the varnish from drying hard, leaving 
a greasy or tacky surface. The next point of importance 
is to make use only of turpentine which has been twice 
distilled, or which is at all events quite clear and colour¬ 
less : you must take care not to have it served to you 
through an oily measure, (as is too often the case,) but 
poured out of the carboy without being shaken or dis¬ 
turbed. When the mastic and turpentine are thus ob¬ 
tained perfectly pure, they may be dissolved in a clean 
bottle without heat , and by half an hour’s shaking in the 
hand. Let them then be strained and treated in the 
usual way, as above mentioned. 

A varnish similar to this is occasionally made, in 
which frankincense or sandrac is employed, instead of 
mastic, and is very well adapted for mixing up colours. 

The French sometimes prepare this resin in pure alco¬ 
hol ; but mastic varnish thus prepared is liable to chill on 
the picture, and produces, in time, a kind of white scale 
over it, which injures its lustre. 


Varnish for Violins , &c. 

Take a gallon of rectified spirits of wine, twelve 
ounces of mastic, and a pint of turpentine varnish; put 


124 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

tlicm in all together in a tin can, and keep it in a very 
warm place, shaking it occasionally, till it is perfectly 
dissolved; then strain it, and it is fit for use. If you 
find it necessary, you may dilute it with turpentine 
varnish. 

Thi 3 varnish is also very useful for furniture of plum- 
tree, mahogany, or rosewood. 

White hard Varnish. 

Take one pound of mastic, four ounces of gum anima. 
and five pounds of gum sandrac: put them altogether, 
to dissolve, into a vessel containing two ounces of rec¬ 
tified spirits of wine, which should be kept in a warm 
place and frequently shaken till all the gums are quite 
dissolved; then strain the mixture through a lawn 
sieve, and it will be fit for use. 

Varnishes for Paling and coarse Wood-work. 

Grind any quantity of tar with as much Spanish brown 
as it will bear, without becoming too thick to be used as 
a paint or varnish; then spread it on the wood with a 
large brush. It soon hardens by keeping. The work 
should be kept as free from dust and insects as possible, 
till the varnish is thoroughly dry. 

This varnish is an excellent preserver of the wood 
from damp; on which account, as well as its being 
cheaper, it is to be preferred to painting, not only foi 
paling, but for weather-boarding, and all coarser kinds 
of painting on wood. 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


125 


The colour may be made a grayish instead of a glossy 
brown, by mixing a small proportion of white lead, or 
of whiting and ivory black, with the Spanish brown. 

Varnish for Coloured Drawings. 

Mix together one ounce of Canada balsam and two 
ounces of spirits of turpentine. Before applying the 
composition, size the drawing or print with a solution of 
isinglass in water; when this is dry, apply the varnish 
with a camel’s-hair brush. 

The use of this varnish gives to coloured drawings 
and prints an appearance resembling that of oil paint¬ 
ings. 

Varnish for Glass. 

Reduce a quantity of gum tragacanth to powder, and 
let itdissohe for twenty-four hours in the white of eggs 
well beat up; then rub it gently on the glass with a 
brush. 


Black Varnish for old Straw or Chip Hats. 

Take half an ounce of the best black sealing-wax, 
pound it well, and put it into a four-ounce phial con¬ 
taining two ounces of rectified spirits of wine. Place it 
in a sand-bath, or near a moderate fire, till the wax is 
dissolved; then lay it on warm, with a fine soft hair 
brush, before a fire or in the sun. It gives a good stiff¬ 
ness. to old straw hats, and a beautiful gloss equal to 
new. It likewise resists wet. 


126 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Varnish for Drawings and Card-work. 

Boil some clean parchment-cuttings in water, in a 
glazed pipkin, till they produce a very clear size. Strain 
it, and keep it for use. 


Changing Varnishes. 

Varnishes of this description are called changing, be¬ 
cause, when applied to metals, such as copper, brass, or 
hammered tin, they give them a more agreeable colour. 
Indeed, the common metals, when coated with them, 
acquire a lustre approaching to that of the precious me¬ 
tals ; and hence these varnishes are much employed in 
manufacturing imitations of gold and silver. 

It would be an endless task to enumerate all the 
various kinds of changing varnishes that can be made, 
and the methods of preparing them. One simple mode 
of mixing I shall, however, mention here, by which all 
the different tints that can be required for changing 
varnishes may be certainly obtained. 

Put four ounces of the best gum gamboge into thirty- 
two ounces of spirits of turpentine; four ounces of dra¬ 
gon’s blood into the same quantity of spirits of turpen¬ 
tine as the gamboge; and one ounce of anatto into eight 
ounces of the same spirits. The three mixtures should 
be made in different vessels. 

They should then be kept for about a fortnight,.in a 
warm place, and as much exposed to the sun as possible. 



COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


127 


At the end of that time they will be fit for use; and you 
can procure any tints you wish by making a composition 
from them, with such proportions of each liquor as prac¬ 
tice and the nature of the colour you are desirous of 
obtaining will point out. 

Changing varnishes may likewise be employed, with 
very good effect, for furniture .—See Lacquers. 


Mordant Varnishes. 

These are a species of varnishes chiefly employed when 
a coating of some other substance is to be entirely or in 
part laid over them. 

Compositions of this kind ought neither to be too thick 
nor too fluid, as either of these faults injures the delicacy 
of the gilding. 

They should likewise be of rather a fat nature, because 
they must be so prepared as not to dry till the gilding 
is completed. 

Various compositions are employed as mordants, and 
almost every workman has a favourite one of his own. 
One of the best is the following :— 

Dissolve one ounce of mastic, one ounce of sandrac, 
half an ounce of gum gamboge, and a quarter of an ounce 
of turpentine, in six ounces of spirits of turpentine. 

Another good mordant may be obtained by exposing 
boiled oil to a strong heat in a pan, and, when you per¬ 
ceive a black smoke disengaged from it, setting it on 
5re, and extinguishing it in a few moments by putting 
on the cover of the pan. Then pour the matter, while 


128 PAINTER, GIRDER, AND VARNISHER. 

it is warm, into a heated bottle, and add to it a little oil 
of turpentine. 

Both the above mordants have something of a drying 
nature, and are therefore objectionable when the work to 
be done, after the application of the mordant, is of a kind 
that requires it to be a long time before drying. In such 
cases, the best mordant is formed by adding a little red 
lead to the copal varnish prepared with camphor and oil 
of lavender, as before directed. 

The choice of mordants must in some measure be 
guided by the tone which you desire to give to your 
work, whether deep or light, red or yellow. For bronz¬ 
ing or very pale gilding, a mixture of asphaltum and 
drying oil, diluted with oil of turpentine, is much re¬ 
commended. 

One of the simplest mordants is that procured by 
dissolving a little honey in thick glue. It has the effect 
of greatly heightening the colour of the gold, and the 
leaf sticks to it extremely well. 


GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON VARNISHES. 

It is a common practice, in the manufacture of spirit 
varnishes, to mix glass or sand with the gum or resin, 
for the purpose of enabling the alcohol to penetrate more 
readily into all parts of the mass. M. Ferrari, however, 
recommends (Giornale de Fissica , ix., p. 36) that in 
place of those substances, a coarsely-powdered charcoal 
should be used ; for the glass or sand generally tends to 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 129 

aggregate the gum or resin at the bottom of the vessels 
and to protect it from the solvent; whilst, on the con¬ 
trary, the charcoal rather tends to raise and divide it. 
The most advantageous proportion appears to be one 
ounce of charcoal to one pound of the spirit or the oil of 
turpentine used. The uses to which different varnishes 
are to be applied must, of course, determine the choice 
of them. Good varnishes, prepared with spirits of wine, 
are very clear, brilliant, and delicate, and may be applied 
with success to furniture, and to fancy ornaments 
which are kept within doors, and admit of re-varnisbiug 
easily; but they have not body nor durability enough 
for coloured grounds—not even wainscoting, ceiling 
ornaments, &c., or any articles exposed to the weather, 
[f you attempt to renovate them by rubbing, they 
become of a meal}" appearance. Their inferiority to oil 
varnishes, is evident from the circumstance that oils will 
of themselves form varnishes by repeated application, 
whereas spirits of wine alone, so applied, disappear 
without leaving any trace. 

Varnishes made with turpentine or other oils are 
much superior in many respects to those prepared with 
spirits of wine. They are pliable and smooth, as well 
as brilliant and durable. They yield better to the ope¬ 
ration of polishing, and are less liable to crack. 

Oil of poppies, nut oil, and linseed oil are used for 
making fat varnishes; oil of turpentine, and oil of la¬ 
vender for the drier ones. The other oils are either too 
fat, too much coloured, or too dear to answer the purpose 

of the varnisher. 

9 


130 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Oil of turpentine might be employed on all occasions 
instead of spirits of wine, in the composition of varnishes, 
were it not for the strong and disagreeable smell arising 
from it. The oil obtained from the coarse or common 
turpentine ought never to be used in the preparation of 
varnishes. A slight coating of spirits of wine varnish 
laid over one coat of turpentine, when dry, is of great 
use in removing the offensive odour. 

Varnishes are usually kept in large strong glass bottles 
with a wide mouth, for the convenience of taking them 
out; but as the light is frequently found to act strongly 
upon them, and render them thick, I would recommend 
wrapping up the bottles in sheep-skin, or moist parch¬ 
ment, folding it round the neck, and tying it with seve¬ 
ral turns of pack-thread. 

The best vessel for holding your varnish while using 
it, is a varnish-pan, which may be had at any colour- 
shop. It is made of tin, with a false bottom ; the in¬ 
terval between the two bottoms is filled with sand, which, 
being heated over the fire, keeps the varnish fluid, and 
makes it flow more readily from the brush. There is a 
tin handle to the pan, and the false bottom comes sloping 
from one end to the other, which causes the varnish to 
run to one end. 

Very great caution is required in the making of var¬ 
nish—a process in which most serious accidents have 
frequently occurred. 

As heat in many cases is necessary to dissolve the 
gums used in making varnish, the best way, when prac¬ 
ticable, is to use what the chemists call a sand-bath, 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


131 


which is simply placing the vessel in which the varn¬ 
ish is in another tilled with sand and placed on the 
tire; this will generally be sufficient to prevent the 
spirits catching tire'; but in case of such accidents, 
(which not unfrequently happen,) it will be best to 
take a vessel so large that there shall be little danger 
of spilling any—indeed, the vessel should never be 
more than two-thirds tilled; but in case of accidents, 
have ready at hand a piece of board sufficiently large 
to cover the top of the vessel, in case of its taking tire, 
as also a wet wrapper, in case it should be spilt when 
on the fire, as water by itself thrown on it only in¬ 
creases the mischief. The person who attends the 
varnish-pot should also have his hands covered with 
gloves, and if these are made of leather, and rather 
damp, it will effectually prevent injury. 

In addition to the compound colors given on p. 104, 
the following receipts by L. E. Andes may be of in¬ 
terest. The figures refer to parts by weight, and the 
ingredients are to be mixed with linseed oil. 

Zinc gray. White lead 25, barytes 30, lamp-black 

2 . 

Silver gray , I. White lead 25, barytes 30, graphite 

4. 

Silver gray , II. White lead 25, barytes 30, graphite 

5. 

Iron gray. White lead 25, barytes 30, graphite 7. 

Stone gray. White lead 25, barytes 30, chrome green 
2, lamp-black 2. 

Pearl gray. White lead 25, barytes 30, ultramarine 
2, lamp-black 2. 

Imperial gray. Zinc white 20, graphite 30, barytes 

15. 


132 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Diamond color. White lead 20, barytes 25, whiting 
15. 

Bridge gray. White lead 30, barytes 15, ochre 3, 
Paris blue 1, lamp-black 2. 

Gray grounding paint. White lead 20, whiting 20. 

Leaf green. Chrome green, light or dark, 22, 
barytes 10. 

Imperial green. Schweinfurth green 13, zinc white 
1 9 

liJt 

Oak color {pale) I. French ochre 25, white lead 6. 

II. White lead 6, French ochre 25, barytes 15. 

III. White lead 6, French ochre 25, barytes 25. 

For producing the three kinds of dark oak use the 
same quantities and ingredients, but substitute dark 
ochre for the French ochre. 

Ochre yellow. French ochre 22, barytes 10. 

Tile red. Venetian red 20, barytes 10. 

Brick red. Venetian red 20, barytes 10, ochre 10. 

Brown. Umber, light or dark, 21, barytes 10. 

Chrome yellow. Chrome yellow 20, white lead 5, 
barytes 10. 

Minium red. Red lead 20, barytes 15. 

Ultramarine blue, I. Ultramarine blue 7, zinc white 

10 . 

II. Ultamarine blue 7, zinc white 10, barytes 5. 

In mixing different colored paints to produce any 
desired tint, it is best to have the principal ingredient 
thick, and add to it the other paints thinner. In the 
following list of the combinations of color required to 
produce a desired tint, the first-named color is the 
principal ingredient and the others follow in the order 
of their importance. Thus, in mixing a limestone 
tint, white is the principal ingredient and red the 
color of which least is needed, etc., the exact propor¬ 
tion of each depending on the shade of color required. 


COLOURS, OILS AND VARNISHES. 


133 


Buff. White, yellow, ochre, red. 

Chestnut. Red, black, yellow. 

Chocolate. Raw limber, red, black. 

Claret. Red, umber, black. 

Copper. Red, yellow, black. 

Dove. White, vermilion, blue, yellow. 

Drab. White, yellow, ochre, red, black. 
Fawn. White, yellow, red. 

Flesh. White, yellow, ochre, vermilion. 
Freestone. Red, black, yellow, ochre, white. 
French gray. White, Prussian blue, lake. 
Gold. White, stone ochre, red. 

Green , bronze. Chrome green, black, yellow. 
Green, pea. White, chrome green. 

Lemon. White, chrome yellow. 

Limestone. White, yellow ochre, black, red. 
Olive. Yellow, blue, black, white. 

Orange. Yellow, red. 

Peach. White, vermilion. 

Pearl. White, black, blue. 

Fink. White, vermilion, lake. 

Purple. Violet, with more red and white. 
Pose. White, madder lake. 

Sandstone. White, yellow ochre, black, red. 
Snuff. Yellow, Vandyke brown. 

Violet. Red, blue, white. 


134 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 

A Painter will consult durability in preference to 
beauty of appearance, or the reverse, according as his 
work is to be more or less exposed to the weather. In 
out-door work, durability is, of course, of the most 
consequence; and as it is likewise the simplest kind 
of painting, I shall begin with noticing the manner of 
executing it. 

Before attempting to lay any colour upon your work, 
you must carefully fill up with putty, so as to make the 
whole surface perfectly level, all flaws, cracks, openings, 
nail-holes, &c.; for, if this be not done, the rain and snow 
will be sure to penetrate into these places, and quickly 
destroy the fruits of your labour. All knots and uneven¬ 
nesses must likewise be carefully removed. When these 
points are accomplished, proceed to the priming of the 
work; that is, laying on the colour which is to serve as 
a ground for the succeeding coatings. The nature of the 
priming will, of course, be regulated by that which the 
surface is ultimately to receive. Sufficient time must be 
allowed for this to dry, according to the state of the 
weather: from two to three days will generally be 
enough. When the wood is new, or great solidity re¬ 
quired in the work, it may be proper to repeat the first 
priming; otherwise, when that is dry proceed to put on 



PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


135 


the first coat of your proposed colour, and afterwards the 
others in succession, as each of the preceding ones be¬ 
comes dry. The number of coats applied will depend 
upon the agreement made, and upon how far the work 
is wanted to be finished and substantial. 

When the wood you are about to colour is new, the 
priming should be laid on as thin as possible; because, 
in this case, the quantity of oil which necessarily sinks 
into the wood is very useful in preserving it. This thin¬ 
ness of the priming in new wood is also the reason why, 
as before observed, it is proper to repeat it. But as the 
thinness tends to delay its drying, if the priming colour 
be one that is naturally hard to dry, do not mix it with 
plain linseed oil, but with one part of drying oil and two 
parts of linseed oil; or if the priming colour be white or 
blue, mix it with linseed oil as usual, but grind a small 
portion of white copperas along with it, because the two 
colours just mentioned are affected in their tints by the 
drying oil. 

No new coating of colour ought ever to be applied till 
the former is perfectly dry, which can never be the case 
while the least stickiness is felt on applying the hand to 
it. The neglect of this precaution is certain to ruin all 
the beauty of painting. Great care should likewise be 
taken to brush off any dust which may have settled upon 
the former coat before applying a new one; for, if it be 
allowed to remain and mix with the colour, the uni¬ 
formity of the tint will be destroyed, particularly in 
bright colours. The workmen ought to be very careful 
that every coating is of the same thickness throughout, 


136 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 


or the work, when done, will have an unfinished and 
slovenly appearance. This forms an additional reason for 
always mixing as much colour at once as is necessary 
for the job to which it is to be applied. The proper 
thickness of each respective coating can only be learned 
by habit and experience. If too thin, it often cracks in 
drying; if too thick, it becomes blistered, wrinkled, and 
unequal. The first coating, however, may alw T ays allow¬ 
ably be made much thinner than any of ihe succeeding 
ones. 

Practice, too, is necessary, in order to obtain even the 
proper use of the brush, and to learn the art of varying 
its strokes according to circumstances. Sometimes long 
strokes are to be employed to extend the‘colour in a - 
uniform manner; at other times the colour should be 
laid on in repeated dabs, for the purpose of incrusting 
it in recesses and places where the surface is unequal. 
The test of the complete workman in this respect is to 
leave no marks of the brush behind him. 

The same general directions that are given for outside 
painting will apply to inside work; but, in this latter, 
more finish and delicacy of execution are necessary than 
in the former; and, as it is not so much exposed to in- 
jury from the effects of weather and the state of the 
atmosphere as the work done without-doors, the painter 
is not obliged to pay so much attention to durability, 
but, in the choice and application of his colours, prin¬ 
cipally to regard beauty and effect. In inside work, the 
surfaces to be painted are frequently composed of fir or 
deal, in which kinds of wood, particularly when new, 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


I O *■* 
O i 


there are usually a great many resinous knots. If these 
be permitted to remain, the colour will run into them 
and not adhere. Before beginning to paint, you should, 
therefore, saturate these knots with a mixture of red 
lead and litharge with a small quantity of oil of tur¬ 
pentine. 

The panelling of wainscot, and other similar parts 
of inside work, will give you frequent occasion to em¬ 
ploy very small brushes or pencils. In using these, you 
should not take your colours out of a pot or pan, but 
have those that you want disposed upon a palette. 
There is more than one advantage attached to this. In 
the first place, if your pencil be only dipped into a pot 
of colour, it brings out with it no more than hangs on 
the outside—a quantity, from the small size of the brush, 
that will go but a little way in working ; whereas, if you 
work and temper the colour by rubbing the pencil about 
in it upon the palette, it will imbibe a considerable 
quantity of the colour. In addition to this, you will 
likewise, by this method, be able to work your pencil to 
a point, which is a great advantage in fine painting and 
drawing lines, and which you could never obtain by 
taking your colour upon it out of a pot. 


Painting in Distemper. 

The leading difference between oil-painting and paint¬ 
ing in distemper is, that in the latter the colours, instead 
of being prepared with oil, are mixed with size and wa¬ 
ter. This circumstance renders many colouring sub- 


138 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

stances, particularly some that contain chalk or clayey 
earth, or are extracted from vegetable matter, proper for 
the purpose of distemper, which cannot be used in 
painting in oil. 

Almost all colouring substances which can be used in 
oil-painting are applicable in distemper; but the reverse, 
as will appear from the remarks 1 have just made, is far 
from being the case. In speaking of colours, care has 
been taken to notice particularly such as, from their 
nature, can be employed only in distemper. 

In painting in distemper, it is advisable to apply all 
the coatings, except the last, warm; not, however, in a 
boiling state, for that is injurious, and may cause wood 
to split. Besides, if the size be too much heated, it 
becomes fat, and will not adhere. In putting on fresh 
coatings, be very careful to preserve an equal thickness 
throughout. 

Without the utmost attention to having the ground 
you are to work upon perfectly clean, no pleasing effect 
can ever result from distemper. Grease and lime on the 
surface that is to receive it would ruin all. They must 
be removed by scraping if the surface be a wall, and by 
a solution of pearlash if it be wood. Canvas must be 
cleaned by means of a ley. 

When the wall or surface is very smooth, a coating of 
warm glue is first applied; but if rough, a coat of Span 
ish white, or chalk mixed with a solution of glue, is em¬ 
ployed to render the surface smoothed; and when the 
coating is dry, it is scraped as clean and as even as pos¬ 
sible. A level surface is indispensable to receive dis- 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


139 


temper. If there are any considerable inequalities or 
holes, they must be filled up with gypsum, and time 
allowed, before applying any coat, for that gypsum to 
gain body, which will not be the case before it is 
thoroughly dry. 

In painting in distemper, the thickness of the colour, 
contrary to the observation I made on that head in oil- 
painting, should be such that it may run or drop from 
the brush in a thread when taken from the pot. If the 
colour do not form a thread, it is too thick, and the work 
is likely to become scaly. 

Distemper is much used in the interior of houses, and, 
when well executed, has a very delicate and beautiful 
appearance. It is likewise free from the disagreeable 
smell which usually arises from the turpentine in oil- 
painting. It is, however, far inferior to oil, both as to 
the durability of the colours and to the preservation of 
the surfaces on which it is applied. In some cases, too, 
it is attended with the inconvenience of not enabling the 
workman to see what effect a particular mixture will 
produce when it is dry. When this happens, the only 
method of obviating the evil is to try each mixture on 
pieces of prepared wood having the same tint as the 
ground on which you are working, so as to obtain the 
real tint. 

A kind of distemper, called by the French badigeon , 
is sometimes used in out-door work, to give a uniform 
tint to houses rendered brown by time, and to churches 
where it is required to render them brighter. It has 
generally a yellow tint. The best kind is made by mix- 


140 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

ing the saw-dust or powder of the same kind of stone 
and slaked lime, in a bucket of water containing a pound 
of alum in solution. The composition is applied with 
a brush 


Painting in Milk. 

In consequence of the injury which has often resulted 
to sick and weakly persons from the smell of common 
paint, the following method of painting with milk has 
been adopted by some workmen, which, for the interior 
of buildings, besides being as free as distemper from any 
offensive odour, is said to be nearly equal to oil-painting 
in body and durability. 

Take half a gallon of skimmed milk, six ounces of 
lime newly slaked,* four ounces of poppy, linseed, or nut- 
oil, and three pounds of Spanish white. Put the lime 
into an earthen vessel or clean bucket, and having 
poured on it a sufficient quantity of milk to make it 
about the thickness of cream, add the oil in small quan¬ 
tities at a time, stirring the mixture with a wooden spa¬ 
tula. Then put in the rest of the milk, and afterwards 
the Spanish white. 

It is, in general, indifferent which of the oils above- 
mentioned you use; but, for a pure white, oil of poppy 
is the best. 

The oil in this composition, being dissolved by the 


* Lime is slaked by dipping it into water, then taking the 
pieoes out immediately and allowing them to slake in the open 




PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


141 


lime, wholly disappears; and, uniting with the whole 
of the other ingredients, forms a kind of calcareous 
soap. 

In putting in the Spanish white, you must be careful 
that it is finely powdered and strewed gently over the 
surface of the mixture. It then, by degrees, imbibes 
the liquid and sinks to the bottom. 

Milk skimmed in summer is often found to be cur¬ 
dled ; but this is of no consequence in the present pre¬ 
paration, as its combining with the lime soon restores it 
to its fluid state. But it must on no account be sour; 
because, in that case, it would, by uniting with the lime, 
form an earthy salt, which could not resist any degree 
of dampness in the air. 

Milk paint may likewise be used for out-door objects 
by adding to the ingredients before-mentioned two 
ounces each more of oil and slaked lime, and two ounces 
of Burgundy pitch. The pitch should be put into the 
oil that is to be added to the milk and lime, and dis¬ 
solved by a gentle heat. In cold weather, the milk and 
lime must be warmed, to prevent the pitch from cooling 
too suddenly, and to enable it to unite more readily with 
the milk and lime. 

Time only can prove how far this mode of painting is? 
to be compared, for durability, with that in oil; for the 
shrinking to which coatings of paint are subject depends 
in great measure upon the nature and seasoning of the 
wood. 

The milk paint used for in-door work dries in about 
an hour; and the oil which is employed in preparing it 


142 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISH ER. 

'entirely loses its smell in the soapy state to which it is 
reduced by its union with the lime. One coating will 
be sufficient for places that are already covered with 
any color, unless the latter penetrate through it and 
produce spots. One coat will likewise suffice, in gen¬ 
eral, for ceilings and staircases; two will be necessary 
for new wood. 

Milk painting may be colored, like every other in 
distemper, by means of the different coloring sub¬ 
stances employed in common painting. The quan¬ 
tity I have given in the receipt will be sufficient 
for one coat to a surface of about twenty-five square 
yards. 

A vehicle or agglutinant for pigments may also be 
prepared from caseine (curd). It is available for many 
purposes, but great care and accuracy are required 
in its preparation. The caseine vehicle—which for con¬ 
venience sake may be called caseine varnish—can be 
combined with dry mineral pigments as well as with 
oil paints. It is a milky fluid with considerable con¬ 
sistency, a caseous odor and disagreeable taste; it is 
very sticky and dries very rapidly. Its specific grav¬ 
ity is, according to its consistency, from 2^° to 5° Be. 
At 9G° F. it decomposes rapidly and completely with 
the evolution of sulphuretted hydrogen. At a lower 
temperature decomposition also sets in after some 
time, but the varnish can still be used. The advan¬ 
tages of caseine varnish are: cheapness, slight odor 
and ra^fid drying, and its disadvantage : its rapid de¬ 
composition at a temperature of over 96° F. 

For the preparation of caseine varnish, 64 parts of 
curd are thoroughly mixed with a quantity of water 
varying according to the desired density, and the re- 



PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


143 


suiting paste is passed through a metal sieve. For the 
quantity of water required for the various degrees of 
density see the receipts below. 

On the other hand, thoroughly burned lime is gradu¬ 
ally slaked with sufficient water of 64.5° F. that it 
falls to a tine powder. Of this powder mix and tritu¬ 
rate 1.5 parts with 7 parts of water, filter through paper 
and gradually add the mixture to the curd, stirring 
constantly. After adding the milk of lime the mixture 
becomes thick and only acquires a certain clearness 
and with it the proper consistency by continuous stir¬ 
ring. Old curd which has become sour is several times 
washed with hot water, and when cold used the same 
as fresh curd. 

Care must be taken that the lime used is of a good 
quality and freshly burned, and that not too little nor 
too much water is used in slaking it. The curd must be 
very finely divided in the water, should not form 
lumps, and the temperature of the water must be ex¬ 
actly 64.5° F. 

Thick caseine varnish of 5° Be. Curd 64 parts, water 
of 64.5° F. 21.3.—Lime 1.5 parts, water of 64.5° F. 7. 

Medium thick caseine varnish of 32° Be. Curd 64 
parts, water of 64.5° F. 64.—Lime 1.5 parts, water of 
64.5° F. 7. 

Thin caseine varnish of 21° B. Curd 64 parts, water 
of 64.5° F. 96.—Lime 1.5 parts, water of 64.5° F. 7. 

Mineral pigments only can be mixed with caseine 
varnish, and these only a short time before the paint 
is to be used. Chalk, it is claimed, possesses the 
special property of yielding a white paint with caseine 
varnish. For painting wood, and especially iron, the 
mineral pigments must first be rubbed to a pasty con¬ 
sistency with linseed oil varnish and then diluted with 
caseine varnish. 


144 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Pure caseine paints. Black. Caseine varnish 100 
parts, lamp-black 26. 

Yellow. Caseine varnish 100 parts, chrome yellow 

20 . 

White . Caseine varnish 100 parts, chalk 64. 

White. Caseine varnish 100 parts, white lead 70. 

Bed. Caseine varnish 100 parts, vermilion 32. 

English red. Caseine varnish 100 parts, English red 
32. 

Blue. Caseine varnish 100 parts, Prussian blue 16, 
white lead 8. 

Green. Caseine varnish 100 parts, white lead 28, 
chrome green 42. 

Ochre. Caseine varnish 100 parts, ochre 24. 

Oil-paints with caseine varnish. Black. Caseine 
varnish 100 parts, lampblack in oil 30. 

Yellow. Caseine varnish 100 parts, chrome yellow 
in oil 50. 

White. Caseine varnish 100 parts, white lead in oil 

100 . 

White. Caseine varnish 100 parts, chalk in oil 60. 

Bed. Caseine varnish 100 parts, vermilion in oil 100. 

English red. Caseine varnish 200 parts, English red 
in oil 100. 

Blue. Caseine varnish 80 parts, Prussian blue in oil 

100 . 

Green. Caseine varnish 100 parts, chrome green in 
oil 100. 

Ochre. Caseine varnish 233 parts, ochre in oil 100. 

Paints with linseed oil varnish and caseine varnish. 
For this purpose the pigments are rubbed with water 
to a very thick paste, and the latter is intimately 
mixed first with the caseine varnish and then with 
the linseed oil varnish. 




145 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 

Black. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 20, lampblack 8. 

Yellow. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 5, chrome yellow 14. 

White. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 10, chalk 64. 

White. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 10, white lead 84. 

Bed. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil varnish 
4, vermilion 32. 

English red. Caseine varnish 100, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 40, English red 32. 

Blue. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil varnish 
15, Prussian blue 8, white lead 16. 

Green. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 10, chrome green 42, white lead 28. 

Ochre. Caseine varnish 100 parts, linseed oil var¬ 
nish 10, ochre 24. 


Silicate Paints. 

When the surface to be painted is of a mineral na¬ 
ture, such as the exterior of a house, the pigments may 
be mixed with a vehicle consisting chiefly of water- 
glass, or soda or potash silicate. This method of paint¬ 
ing requires some care, and a knowledge of the chem¬ 
ical nature of the pigments used. Some colors are 
completely destroyed by the alkali contained in the 
waterglass. Among those pigments which are not al¬ 
tered by the alkali may be mentioned carbonate of 
lime, barytes, zinc white, cadmium yellow, Naples 
yellow, barium chromate, chrome red, red ultrama¬ 
rine, blue ultramarine, cobalt blue, cobalt green, 
chrome green, ivory black. When a wall is to be 
painted, it should first be prepared with a mortar com- 
10 


146 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

posed of pure fat lime and clean sharp sand. The 
water should also be free from saline impurities, as 
these might subsequently effloresce and destroy the 
surface of the paint. When the surface of this plaster 
is dry, a weak solution of water-glass.should be applied 
and the operation several times repeated. 

For making the paint, dilute silicate of soda solution 
until it works well with the brush and add dry color¬ 
ing matter such as will not be decomposed by the al¬ 
kali ; ochres, Venetian red, smalts, umbers and siennas 
may be employed. 

Rules for Painting. 

The following General Rules may with advantage 
be laid down in painting: 1. Let the ground of your 
work be properly cleaned, prepared and dried. 2. See 
that your colors are equally well ground and duly 
mixed. 6. Do not mix much more, or any less paint 
than is necessary for the present work. 4. Keep the 
paint well mixed while the work is going on. 5. 
Have your paint of due thickness, and lay it on 
equally and evenly. 6. Do not apply a succeeding 
coat of paint before the previous one is sufficiently dry. 
7. Do not employ a lighter color over a darker. 8. Do 
not add dryers to colors long before they are used. 9. 
Avoid using any excess of dryer, or a mixture of dif¬ 
ferent sorts. 10. Do not over-charge your brush with 
paint, or replenish it before it is sufficiently ex¬ 
hausted. 11. Begin with the highest part and pro¬ 
ceed downwards with your work. 12. Do your work 
to the best of your ability, honestly, for such you will 
find the best policy. 

The paint used for priming is generally a mixture of 
white lead and red lead with a proper proportion of 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


147 


driers, but when the finishing color is to be black, 
dark green, dark brown, etc., the priming may be 
done with a lead color made of vegetable-black and 
white lead in equal quantities. These colors should be 
mixed with boiled oil for out-door work, and with lin¬ 
seed oil for in-door work, a small quantity of turpen¬ 
tine being added in either case, the proportions being 
3 parts of oil to one of turpentine. When the priming 
is dry it should be rubbed down with glass-paper, the 
operation being best performed as follows: A piece of 
paper should be wrapped round a fiat piece of wood, 
about 4 inches long by 3 inches wide and 1 inch thick, 
forming a sort of brush, and this should be rubbed 
equally over the whole surface, which will thus be 
nicely smoothed, whilst its perfectly level character 
will not be injured. A piece of glass-paper which has 
several times been used in this way, should be saved for 
further use in the latter stages of the work, when great 
refinement is required. A strip of glass-paper may be 
wrapped over the edge of a piece of wood shaped like 
a chisel for use in the edges of panels and similar 
places, or round the finger, or a piece of rag for the 
carved parts of moulding, great care being taken that 
a stiff edge such as is formed by a sudden bend in the 
glass paper may not come in contact with the work, 
producing scratches which are very troublesome to get 
rid of. When the priming has been properly rubbed 
down, and all the nail holes, bad joints, cracks, etc., 
filled in with putty, the second coat is laid on. It 
should be observed that the second color for new work 
is made up chiefly with oil, as it best stops the suction 
of the wood, but the second color for old work is made 
up chiefly with turpentine, because oil color would not 
dry or adhere to it so well. 


148 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

The color should be spread on as evenly as possible, 
and to effect this, as soon as the whole, or a conven¬ 
ient quantity is covered, the brush should be passed 
over it in a direction contrary to that in which it is 
finally to be laid off—this is called crossing. After the 
crossing it should be laid off softly and carefully in a 
direction contrary to the crossings, but with the grain 
of the wood, taking care that none of the cross brush 
marks be left visible. The criterion of good workman¬ 
ship is that the paint be laid evenly and the brush 
marks be not observed. In laying off, the brush 
should be laid into that portion of the work already 
done, that the joining may not be perceived. Every 
coat should be perfectly dry, and all dust carefully re¬ 
moved before the succeeding one is laid over it. 

In the third painting the oil and turpentine should 
be used in equal proportions, and some approach is 
made to the finishing color. Thus, if the finishing 
color is to be lavender, the third coat should consist of 
white slightly tinted with that color. In some cases 
it is desirable that the coat preceding the finishing, 
should be darker than that which is to be laid over it. 
In fact, some authorities claim that the only way to 
produce solid uniform work is by making every suc¬ 
ceeding coat lighter in tint than the one which pre¬ 
ceded it. No matter what the finish is to be, the first 
coat should always be darker than the one which suc¬ 
ceeds it; and the darker the shade of the finishing coat, 
the more important it is that this rule should be ob¬ 
served. 

The fourth may be considered as the finishing coat, 
and must not be applied unless the third coat proves 
perfectly satisfactory, that is, unless the surface has 
dried absolutely uniform, as regards surface; for if one 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


149 


part is glossy and the other dull, it will be clear that 
the absorbent quality of the wood is not stopped and 
the third painting must be repeated. 

In repainting old work the surface should first be 
gone over with the stopping knife, removing all ex¬ 
crescences, and it is then to be rubbed with pumice 
stone and water, the greasy parts being well rubbed 
with turpentine. Parts from which the paint has 
been entirely removed, must then be gone over with 
a coat of priming color, and cracks, nail-holes, etc., are 
to be filled up with putty. The first coat is then to be 
given, and this is to be mixed with turpentine. The 
quality of the next coat will depend on the manner in 
which it is to be finished. If it is to be painted twice 
in oil, and flatted, the next coat should be mixed up 
chiefly in oil, and tinted like the finishing color to 
form a ground for the flatting. The greater the gloss 
of the ground the more dead will be the finishing coat 
or flatting, likewise the more dead the ground the 
better will the finishing oil shine. It is, therefore, a 
general rule, that for finishing in oil, the under coat 
should be turpentine, and for finishing flat, the under 
coat of ground color should be oil. But all tur¬ 
pentine grounds must have a little oil mixed with 
them, and all oil under coats must have a small quan¬ 
tity of turpentine added to them, excepting the prim¬ 
ing or first coat in new work. 

Flatting 

Consists in employing spirit of turpentine instead of 
linseed oil in the diluting of the color, so that no more 
oil is used than is necessary to bind the paint and fix it 
on the ground, and not sufficient to make it bear out 
with the gloss of ordinary oil painting; a third or 


150 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

fourth of the oil being sufficient. This mode is, of 
course, only suited to internal and delicate work in 
which the change of color and glare of light are to be 
avoided, and it might in some cases appear to advan¬ 
tage mixed and comparted with ordinary painting, 
diversified by dead color and gloss ; or the latter may 
be produced by varnish. 

The priming, under the same conditions, is the same 
for wood, plaster, stucco, and stone; but for paper and 
canvas, which are made rotten by oil, the priming 
must be of size, and for iron work, first freed from rust, 
it must in all cases be of oil, avoiding the use of copper 
greens as a first coat. For small works, primed canvas 
may be obtained from the colormen. Dryers are re¬ 
quisite in priming as they dispose the upper painting 
to dry quicker and unite better. Sponging with water 
previous to applying each coat of paint disposes it 
to work and unite better, and in work exposed to the 
sun prevents blistering. 

Fresco. 

The art of painting in fresco is naturally adapted to 
decorative painting, and the zealous attention of emi¬ 
nent artists having been turned to the revival of 
this great and free mode of art, we can not withhold 
our observations thereon. 

It is hardly necessary to inform the reader, that 
fresco painting is performed with pigments prepared 
in water, and applied upon the surface of fresh laid 
plaster of lime and sand, with which walls are 
covered; and as it is that mode of painting which is 
least removed in practice from modelling or sculpture, 
it might not improperly be called plastic painting; 
for which the best lime, perfectly burnt and kept long 


PRACTICE OF PAINTING. 


151 


slacked in a wet state, is most essential. And as lime 
in an active state is the common cementing material 
of the ground and colors employed in fresco, it is ob¬ 
vious that such colors or pigments only can be used 
therein as remain unchanged by lime. This need not, 
however, be a universal rule for painting in fresco, 
since other cementing materials, as strong or stronger 
than lime, may be employed, which have not the 
action of lime upon colors—such as calcined gypsum, 
of which plaster of Paris is a species—which being 
neutral sulphates of lime, exceedingly unchangeable, 
have little or no chemical action upon colors, and 
would admit even Prussian blue, vegetal lakes, and 
the most tender colors to be employed thereon, so as 
greatly to extend the sphere of coloring in fresco, 
adapted to its various design ; which basis merits also 
the attention of the painter in crayons, scagliola, and 
distemper. 

So far, too, as regards durability and strength of 
the ground, the compo and cements so generally em¬ 
ployed in architectural modelings, stucco and plaster, 
would afford a new and advantageous ground for 
painting in fresco; and as it resists damp and mois¬ 
ture, it is well adapted, with colors properly chosen, 
to situations in which paintings, executed in other 
modes of the art, or even in ordinary fresco, would not 
long endure. 

As these materials, and others now in use, were 
either unknown or unemployed by the ancient paint¬ 
ers in fresco, their practice was necessarily limited to 
a small number of pigments ; but every art demands 
such a variation in practice as adapts it to circum¬ 
stances and the age in which it is exercised, without 
attention to which it may degenerate, or at best remain 
stationary 7 , but cannot advance. 


152 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Although differing exceedingly in their mechanical 
execution, the modes of fresco, distemper, and scagliola 
agree in their chemical relations: so far, therefore, as 
respects colors and pigments, the foregoing remarks ap¬ 
ply to these latter arts. 

Scagliola. 

This requires all the attention of the fresco painter 
in respect to the materials employed, and the skill of 
the grainer in imitating marbles, but comes nearer to 
the Plasterer’s than the Painter’s Art, although the 
Decorator is best qualified for its performance. Its 
basis is plaster of Paris mixed with the colors of fresco, 
laid on a solid ground of plaster or cement, according 
to the design, and, when dry and hard, it is polished. 


CLEANLINESS IN WORKING. 


153 


CLEANLINESS IN WORKING. 

The principal end aimed at by the Painter, Gilder, 
or Varnisher, and especially by the last two, is to 
beautify ; and, without the strictest cleanliness, it is 
obvious this end can never be answered. 

Every surface to which colour, varnish, or gilding 
is to be applied should first be thoroughly cleaned ; it 
should be rubbed, brushed, and even washed, if neces¬ 
sary ; in the last case, however, it must be well dried 
afterwards. 

When any surface which is to be varnished or 
painted has been previously varnished, and is found 
to be incrusted with dust or dirt, soap and water must 
be applied gently with a sponge, and great care taken 
every time, after the sponge has been rubbed over the 
varnish, to rinse it in clean water, and to squeeze it 
thoroughly out before it be again dipped into the soap 
and water. 

In grinding colours, after you have ground as much 
of any one sort as you want, before you proceed to 
place any other kind upon the stone, let it be perfectly 
cleaned from the former colour, by first rubbing it 
with a cloth and fine dry ashes or sand, and afterwards 
with a little spirit of turpentine; then let it be well 
wiped with a rag, or with leather shavings. 


154 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

But of all things in which cleanliness is essential, 
brushes and pencils are, perhaps, the most to be con¬ 
sidered. With regard to the painter, where the very great¬ 
est nicety is required, a separate brush or pencil should be 
assigned to each colour, wiped when the work is done, 
and preserved by covering it with water. With artists, 
this is an invariable rule, but the occupations of the 
mechanical painter are hardly ever of such extreme deli¬ 
cacy as to require him to adopt it. In general, it is 
sufficient for him to carefully wash out every brush or 
pencil after he has done with it, or before he employs it 
for any other colour than that with which he has been 
previously using it. This washing out should be first 
in the oil with which the colour has been ground or 
mixed, (but neat linseed oil, or oil of turpentine, will 
always sufficiently answer for general purposes,) and 
afterwards in warm soap-suds. Brushes that have been 
used for varnishing may, on an emergency, be tolerably 
washed out with boiling water and yellow soap only. 
It is, however, much better to wash them well first with 
spirit of wine, if the varnish has been compounded with 
spirits, or with oil of turpentine, if it has been prepared 
with any description of oil; and, in either case, to clean 
them thoroughly with warm soap and water. The spi¬ 
rits used for washing varnish brushes are not thereby 
rendered unfit for use in preparing varnishes for common 
purposes. Remember, if either oil or colour be once 
allowed to dry in a brush or pencil, it is spoiled for 
ever. For coloured varnishes, kept in small quantities, 
a brush may be appropriated to each exclusively, and 


CLEANLINESS IN WORKING. 


155 


left in the bottle; but in this case the cork should be 
perforated so as to fit the handle, and the points of the 
hairs should dip into the varnish; the brush will then 
be always ready for use. A common mustard bottle 
will in general answer the purpose. 


150 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


DIRECTIONS FOR GRAINING AND IMITATING 

WOODS AND MARBLES. 


1.—OAK. 

Imitation of Oak being so much in demand, it is 
of importance that the pupil should practise upon it 
before any other wood; for that purpose you will 
require the following tools :— 

Combs. 

Gutta percha is the best material for making combs; 
it is cheap, wears well, is easily cut into any size or 
form, and makes clean work. Purchase a piece of 
gutta percha, one foot square and one-eighth of an 
inch thick, cut it into squares, varying from one to 
four inches, and be particular in cutting the edges 
straight; take one of the squares, and with a pen¬ 
knife cut the edge to the depth of a quarter of an 
inch, leaving a small space between each tooth. If 
you cut in a slanting direction each way, you will 
thereby form the teeth of the comb and the space 
together; by this method you can make them fine or 



GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


157 


coarse, to suit your work. For very particular work 
t use two or three combs made of cork; they are 
objectionable for general use, as they scon wear out. 
Take a flat piece of fine-grained cork, as free from 
boles as possible, square it as truly as you can, cut 
the square edge into teeth to the sizes you want, 
leaving the teeth as square and evenly cut as possible; 
these, with two or three of the finest cut steel combs, 
are all you require. 


Brushes. 

1. Common pound-brush and sash-tool. 

2. Long hog’s-hair overgrainer. 

3. Badger-hair softener. 

4. Sponge. 


Colours , &c. 

Vandyke brown, both ground in oil and water. 

Baw and burnt sienna, do. 

Turkey umber raw and burnt, ground in oil. 

Oxford ochre, do. 

Sugar of lead, do. 

Blue black, ground in water. 

Bees-wax, linseed oil, and turpentine. 

The above colours are all that are necessary for any 
description of oak. 

i r ou will require a Lew smooth boards for practising 
upon. Bastard mahogany or baywood is the best 
wood to make them of, as it is not so liable to warp 
as deal. The best size is about two feet by one foot. 


158 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Prepare them with four coats of paint in the usual 
way, taking care to get them up as smooth as possible; 
the best ground colours are made from the following 
colours mixed with white lead :— 

For light oak—Oxford ochre and white. 

Middle shade—Oxford ochre, with a little Venetian 
red. 

Dark oak—Oxford ochre, orange chrome, Venetian 
red, and burnt umber. 

Graining Colour. 

For light oak, mix two-thirds linseed oil with one- 
third turpentine; add a little Vandyke brown or 
burnt umber. If you want a warm colour, add burnt 
sienna; if a yellow colour, add raw sienna or Oxford 
ochre. Melt bees-wax in oil, and mix a small quan¬ 
tity with the colour: this is to prevent the colour from 
running when you have combed it. You must take 
particular care that it is well mixed together. Add to 
the above a quantity of sugar of lead or other dryers, 
then strain it through a double fold of fine muslin 

Your graining colour being now prepared, brush 
over your board with it, taking care not to put too 
much on; if you do so you will make dirty work : lay 
it quite level, and uniform in colour. Now take a 
gutta percha comb, and draw it straight down the full 
breadth of the comb, beginning at one side of the 
board; by slightly inclining the comb you will make 
the grain finer. Now take a fine steel comb, and go 
over the whole of the previous combing in a slightly 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


159 


waving or zigzag manner; practice will soon enable 
you to do this with ease. You must get a piece of real 
oak, and endeavour to imitate the natural grain; if 
you can get a piece full of figure or veins, so much 
the better, as it will be the best guide you can have 
Vour board being combed, you must now take a piece 
of soft rag and double it over your thumb, holding it 
tight on the end of the nail, and try to imitate the 
figuring on the real oak. You may make some excel¬ 
lent figuring by using the blank end of the steel comb 
with the rag over it. You will find it very difficult to 
do this at first, but you must in this, as in every thing 
else, adopt the motto, “ that if at first you don’t suc¬ 
ceed, try, try, try again.” Do not practise too much 
from one piece of oak, as by doing so you are apt to 
acquire a stiff and formal style, but endeavour to vary 
it as much as possible. You have now combed and 
figured it: when dry it is ready for overgraining; for 
that purpose you will want a sponge, a basin and 
plate, fuller’s earth, Vandyke brown, a little blue 
black, some stale beer, badger-hair softener, and over 
grainer. Put some water into the basin, dissolve a 
little fuller’s earth in it; wet your sponge with this 
and rub over your board; now take a little of the 
Vandyke brown, with a small quantity of the blue 
black, and mix them together with weak beer in the 
plate; dip your overgrainer into this mixture, and 
draw it straight down or across the board; soften it a 
little with the badger: this, if properly done, will give 
it a uatural and pleasing appearance. By making the 


1(30 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

ground and graining colours darker, you can produce 
any shade of oak in the same manner. To produce a 
rich dark old oak you must proceed as above, and then 
glaze it over as follows:—Mix some black japan with 
turpentine and a little boiled oil; add a little burnt 
sienna or Victoria lake, and go over the whole of the 
work with it. This mixture will give it an exceed¬ 
ingly rich appearance when varnished. 

2.—SPIRIT COLOUR. 

This colour is not so good as oil colour, but is very 
useful at times on account of its quick drying quali¬ 
ties. It is made as follows :—Grind a quantity of the 
best washed whitening in turpentine, mix with it 
either Vandyke brown, burnt umber, or Oxford ochre, 
ground in oil, in quantity according to the shade you 
want; add to this a sufficient quantity of turpentine 
varnish to bind or fasten the colour; thin it with tur¬ 
pentine; rub your panel in and comb it quickly, or it 
will set before you can do so. It dries quite dead 
when it has stood a short time. Take a flat hog’s- 
hair fitch, dip it into a solution of Scotch soda and 
water with a little burnt sienna mixed with it; mark 
out your figure with this, taking care not to put too 
much on, or it will run; and remember that wherever 
the soda touches it will destroy the graining colour. 
When you have figured your panel, wash off quickly 
with a sponge and plenty of clean water; the figure 
will stand out clear and bright. Now go over the 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


161 


whole with a brush and weak beer, and overgrain in 
the usual way. By this method you may grain and 
varnish a door in a couple of hours’ time. 

3.—POLLARD OAK. 

This oak is interspersed alternately with knots and 
figuring, generally arranged in a waving and graceful 
form. To grain this wood in oil colour, proceed es 
follows :—Rub in with your light graining colour, mix 
a little colour several shades darker, put a touch of 
this colour here and there, according to the size you 
want the knots; with the same colour put in a few 
strokes, in sweeping or graceful lines, from one mass 
of knots to another; now comb it with a coarse comb 
in the direction of the knots, sweeping round them 
with the comb; where you cannot do this, you must 
work it out with your nail and the rag, keeping all in 
an easy flowing style. It is only by constant practice 
that you will be enabled to do this with freedom. 
Now figure it, starting from the knots in very fine 
strokes, gradually enlarging as you get into the plain 
spaces. To overgrain this, proceed as before, and 
shade across the grain and amongst the knots. Gene¬ 
rally speaking, wherever there is a twist or wave in 
the grain there will be a shade. Now take a pencil 
and touch up the grain about the knots, and put 
strokes of dark colour across them, to imitate the 
cracks you may see in nearly all knots. 

11 


162 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


4.—ROOT OF OAK. 

This oak consists of a succession of masses of knots 
with the grain twisting and curling round each knot 
and mass of knots, running into and round each 
other; what figuring it has is very small, and runs 
with the grain. It may be done in exactly the same 
manner as the pollard oak, and enriched by glazing 
with the dark oak glazing colour. 

5.—TO GRAIN POLLARD AND ROOT OF OAK 

IN DISTEMPER. 

Damp down your work with the sponge and fuller’s 
earth, mix Vandyke brown with a little burnt sienna, 
dip a clean sash-tool into beer, then into the colour, 
spread it on to your work, using it freely. Now take 
your tool and a little dark colour, and press it against 
the panel here and there, making the hairs spread out; 
then suddenly draw it away, soften it a little with the 
badger; take a small round hog’s-hair quill tool, dip it 
into dark colour, hold it between your right-hand 
finger and thumb, put the point against your work in 
the places where you have pressed your large tool, 
give it a sharp twist; by doing this properly you will 
form the imitation of a knot. When dry, use the 
small overgrainer and weak colour; dip the over¬ 
grain er in, then draw a common comb through it to 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


163 


separate the hairs; now draw it across the panel, giv¬ 
ing it a sort of half-circular stroke, slightly zigzag; 
while it is wet badger it, taking particular care only to 
use the badger one way, either up or down. By doing 
this carefully, you will form a light and dark grain at 
the same time. When you have sufficiently practised 
this method you will be able to produce some very 
good effects. 


6.—WALNUT. 

Walnut may be imitated in exactly the same 
manner as the above, using more black in your 
graining colour. 

7.—BIRD’S-EYE MAPLE IN DISTEMPER. 

This is one of the most delicate and beautiful of 
woods, and requires great care and cleanliness in 
working. To imitate it you will require the following 
tools:—Badger; one 4-inch hog’s-hair mottler; one 
thick 2-inch hog’s-hair mottler; one 1-inch short- 
haired hog’s-hair mottler; one 3-inch, 2-inch, and 1- 
inch came-l-hair mottlers; one 2-inch sable-hair pencil 
overgrainer; a single pencil. 

The best ground colour for graining maple upon is 
a light cream colour, and the best colour to grain it 
with is Vandyke brown, mixed with a little raw sienna. 
Bub over your panel with a damp chamois or wash- 
leather; dip a large sash-tool into stale beer, then iuto 


1G4 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

the colour; spread it evenly on your work, badger it 
until you get it as uniform in colour as possible; 
take the large hog’s-hair mottler, damp it with clean 
water; now begin at the top of your panel, and with 
the end of the mottler touch the panel, drawing it 
down at the same time for about half an inch, hold- 
ing it in an angular direction; by doing so you will 
take off a slanting strip of colour. Go on in the same 
way to the bottom of the panel, leaving unequal strips 
of light and shade; now go over this again in the 
same way, but holding your mottler in the opposite 
direction ; you will form a sort of irregular checkered 
pattern; lightly badger this across the panel until it 
appears soft and mellow; now slightly soften in an 
upward direction. As you become used to the tools, 
you will be able to modify the figure and give variety. 
Now take your short-haired hog’s-hair mottler, damp it. 
and with one corner of it take off a touch of the colour 
on the top of each shade; these are to imitate the 
bright light, or reflection, that accompanies a knot or 
bird’s-eye; with a pencil, and dark colour, form the 
eye just under the extreme point of the bright light; 
for common work, a dot with the end of your finger 
will suffice. 

To overgrain this, take a little of the colour and 
tint it with a small quantity of Indian red, or lake; 
you must only have it of sufficient depth of colour 
barely to show on your work; if too deep it looks 
coarse. With a pencil and this colour begin to curl 
a fine line round one of your principal knots, gra- 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


dually extending from one to another, keeping either 
in the centre or to the side of the panel until you 
have carried it from top to bottom. Now take your 
pencil overgrainer, dipped in the same colour, and 
draw it down parallel with your pencil-work, and fill 
up the rest of the panel with it. 

8.—TO GRAIN MAPLE IN OIL. 

I am not aware that any one has attempted to grain* 
this wood in oil before I did, and I have only taught it 
to two grainers. It takes considerably more time to 
execute than in distemper; but, if well done, it is 
infinitely superior in every respect. The ground 
should be got up very smoothly, in such a manner 
that you will not have to use sand-paper on the last 
coat. Prepare your colour in the same way as the 
light oak graining colour, using Vandyke brown and 
a little raw sienna to stain with; strain it well, taking 
particular care that it is free from the slightest par¬ 
ticle of grit; rub in your panel with it; take a damp 
wash-leather, roll it up tight, and use it as a mottler; 
soften well with the badger; get a pencil-stick, cut 
one end of it into an oval form, wrap a strip of wash- 
leather round the oval, in such a manner that only 
one thickness of it will appear round the end of the 
oval; tie it fast; now dip it into dark colour and dot 
in the eyes with it, then use the leather on your 
thumb-nail to form the bright lights springing from 


1G6 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


the knots or eyes; when dry, you can overgrain it 
either in distemper or oil. 


9.—SATIN-WOOD. 

The proper ground for this wood is a yellow cream 
colour, made from Oxford ochre and chrome yellow. 
The best colour to grain it with is sienna, with a 
slight touch of Vandyke brown and burnt sienna 
jnixed with it. This wood has a great similarity to 
mahogany in the form of its grain; if you can grain 
one well, you can the other. Rub in your colour, 
using beer and a sash-tool; dip a sponge or wash- 
leather in clean water, and draw it down your panel, 
partially clearing off the colour in places as you go on. 
Now take the mahogany, or thin hog’s-hair mottler, 
and cut out portions of the colour that is left on the 
panel; in this way you will form the lights or reflec¬ 
tions you may see in the real wood, or in a piece of 
Spanish mahogany, which will do as well; they are 
just the same, only not so large. Badger it cross-way 
of the panel; you must occasionally use a camel-hair 
mottler; press it against your work, and draw it down 
with a slight jerking motion; this will form a very 
close and regular mottle. To overgrain it, use the 
mahogany overgrainer, or flat sable, (divided with the 
comb,) dipped into a tint of blue black in weak beer. 
To imitate the curl, or feather, lay on very light colour 
freely; then take a small tool, or flat fitch, and with 
colour several shades darker make a succession of half- 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


107 


circles, one above the other, beginning at the bottom 
of the panel, gradually reducing the sweep of the 
circle as you rise to the top. While it is wet, take 
the mahogany mottler and cut out the lights, spray¬ 
ing them from the centre of the circle each way. 
Overgrain as before, taking care to run the grain in 
the same direction as the half-circles. 

10.—MAHOGANY IN DISTEMPER. 

Ground colour made with red lead, Venetian red, 
and orange chrome : graining colours, Vandyke brown, 
burnt sienna, and Victoria lake. This lake is not 
much known as a graining colour; there is no colour 
equal to it for mahogany. To grain this wood you 
must proceed in exactly the same manner as for satin- 
wood, with this addition, that while the colour is wet 
you must stipple or dapple it all over with the end 
of the badger, to imitate the pores of the wood; this 
will give it a very natural appearance. Overgrain 
with Vandyke brown and blue black. 

11.—MAHOGANY IN OIL. 

Mix a light colour in exactly the same way as for 
light oak, using burnt sienna to stain with; rub in 
your panel with it, mix a dark colour with Victoria 
lake and Vandyke brown ; use this with a small tool, 
or fitch to put in the dark shades; mottle it with a 
piece of stiff card-hoard, or a rag or leather drawn tight 


168 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIiER. 

over a steel comb; badger it well. When dry, glaze 
it all over with Victoria lake in distemper, and while 
wet, stipple with the end of the badger, and overgrain 
as before. 


12.—ROSEWOOD. 

Rub in with a light distemper colour, made with 
Vandyke brown and burnt sienna; take a sash-tool 
and dark colour, made with Vandyke brown and Vic¬ 
toria lake, and put in some broad irregular shades, 
leaving light spaces running between: now use your 
overgrainer and blue black, curling or crossing the 
dark parts, making some straight, others broken, just 
as you see it in the real wood; where you cannot use 
the overgrainer with effect, use a pencil; when dry, 
glaze it all over with Victoria lake in oil, wiping it out 
in places. This will give it a very rich appearance. 

The foregoing are all the woods that need be de¬ 
scribed here,—in fact, ail that are adapted to general 
use. If you can grain these well, you will be able to 
imitate any other on exactly the same principles. 


({RAINING AND IMITATING. 


109 


MARBLES. 


the principal marbles for adapta 
decoration:— 


The following are 
tion to general use in 

Sienna, 

Black and Gold, 
Saint Ann’s, 

Verd Antique, 
Egyptian Green, 
Rouge Roi, 


Italian Jasper, 

Dove, 

Black Bardilla, 
Derbyshire Spar, and 
Granites. 


Sienna. 

This marble is the most useful of any, as it is well 
adapted for decorating halls, staircases, &c. Out of a 
variety of ways of doing it, the following is the best 
Prepare your ground-work as smoothly as possible, with 
a light buff colour made from Oxford ochre; mix a 
variety of tints as follows:—Dark vein colour, made 
with ivory black and Indian red; by adding white to 
this you will produce a few different shades of neutral 
tints. Make a few tints from Indian red and Prussian 
blue, with white: place these conveniently on a large 
palette; now give your work a thin coat of the buff 
paint; while wet, take a large feather, dip it into tur¬ 
pentine, then into the dark vein colour; with this form 
a leading vein right across your panel or slab, giving it 
a broken or irregular appearance; strike a few strag¬ 
gling veins from this; now use your feather and neutral 



170 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

tints, and put in some smaller veins, breaking it into 
small irregular pieces on, or springing from, the leading 
vein. Avoid as much as possible giving it that formal 
appearance which so many grainers affect, as it is un¬ 
natural. Always remember this, that there is very 
rarely, if ever, a circle, a square, or a straight line in 
any marble. Now badger it well until it is soft and 
mellow; when dry, take a piece of old silk, dip it into 
linseed oil and rub it very sparingly over the work; 
now take a feather and thin white mixed with turpen¬ 
tine, go over your work with it, touching it in an irre¬ 
gular manner in and about the veins; soften or blend 
it with the badger as you go on, then put in a touch 
of solid white here and there among the veins. Now 
use Oxford ochre and raw sienna, with occasionally a 
little crimson lake; with these glaze over your work in 
parts, taking care always to put the darkest parts in 
connection with the leading vein ; now use a pencil and 
ivory black, and put in some sharp touches on and 
about the leading vein; this, if properly done, will 
make the veins appear sunk, or give them depth. 

Black and Gold Marble. 

Prepare a smooth black ground; slightly oil it; place 
on your palette some white, Indian red, Oxford ochre, 
black, and a little orange chrome; now use a large pen¬ 
cil, and take up a portion of the whole or part of these 
colours on your pencil; roll it across or lengthways of 
your board, leaving it in irregular patches; now con¬ 
nect these patches together by fine lines in the same 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 171 

colours ; fill up the panel with irregular fine lines, run¬ 
ning in the same direction, with short lines or touches 
crossing and connecting them; now use a dark lead 
colour, and fill in the spaces between the lines in parts 
with it, then put here and there on the top of these a 
touch of a lighter lead colour; when dry, you can cut 
the patches of colour into better form, if required, with 
black and a pencil, and give them depth by glazing in 
places with touches of white. 

Saint Ann’s. 

This marble is very similar in the form of its vein to 
black and gold: the patches of colour are much smaller 
and more crowded together; it is done in exactly the 
same manner on a black ground, using white alone for 
the veins, then fill up the same with lead colour. 

Verd Antique , or Ancient Green. 

This marble is done upon a black ground; oil the 
work as before; mix several shades of green, made 
from Prussian blue and chrome yellow; arrange these 
on your palette, and a little Indian red. Take a feather, 
dip it into your darkest green, and go over the whole 
of the panel with it, using it freely; follow in the same 
manner with the lighter shades, occasionally using a 
little of the Indian red; then take some black, and 
put in a quantity of irregular broken patches with it, 
allowing the green to run in broken lines through 
them; now put in some solid patches of white, in form 
like broken pieces of flagstone or earthenware, and in 


172 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Size from a quarter of an inch to two inches. When 
dry, glaze over all with a green, made with Antwerp 
blue and Italian pink, using also a little crimson lake: 
in places touch up the whites again, making some solid, 
others transparent; then edge them round with a fine 
line of black. 


Egyptian Green. 

Black ground. Take a sash-tool, and glaze over youi 
work with the darkest green you can make from Prus¬ 
sian blue and chrome yellow; now use the feather and a 
lighter green, and streak your panel all in one direction, 
occasionally using a little Indian red; now dip your 
feather in a thin white, and streak it over the other in 
a slanting direction, giving it a slight curl, and crossing 
the first streaks; blend these well together; when dry, 
glaze it all over with a bluish green, made with Ant¬ 
werp blue and Italian pink; this colour is perfectly 
transparent. Now touch up your light streaks here and 
there with white, and blend it well. 

Rouge Roi , or Royal Red. 

This is done upon a bluish gray ground. Oil the 
ground; mix burnt ochre with a little Indian red; rub 
in your panel with this. Mix a rich brown with Indian 
red and ivory black; cover a portion of the panel with 
this colour. Now take a piece of paper, and crumple 
it up in your hand; dab your panel all over with this; 
dip the paper into black, rub it slightly on your palette- 
board, to take otf the superfluous black; then lightly 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


173 


dab it on the dark parts of the panel; go over the whole 
of it in the same way with a light blue, then here and 
there with white. Now wipe out a vein in places with 
a rag, leaving the gray ground clear; make some long, 
running irregularly across the panel, others short, and 
varying in breadth from a fine line to an inch and a 
half; when dry, glaze it in places with Indian red and 
black, using the Indian red alone occasionally; make 
the veins pure white in parts, in others transparent. 

Italian Jasper. 

Ground colour, a light green drab; oil the ground. 
Mix together Indian red and Victoria lake; with this 
rub in several large and small patches, inclining to a 
circular form; mix a few olive green tints with white, 
blue black, and raw sienna, and several shades of gray 
made from ivory black and Prussian blue. Place these 
conveniently on your palette, also a little ochre; dip 
your feather into turpentine, and then into the olive 
tints, and run it between, and round, and across the 
patches of red; blend these well; then go over in the 
same way with the gray tints. When dry, glaze over 
the gray and olive tints with pure white, making them 
solid in places, in others transparent. Soften or blend 
it well; glaze the dark parts here and there with crim¬ 
son lake; while this is wet, take a feather, or small 
overgrainer, dipped in very thin white, and draw it 
over some of the smaller of the dark parts, giving it 
something the appearance that an onion has when cut 
in half; touch up in places with dark colour. 


174 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Dove Marble . 

Ground colour, a bluish lead colour. Dip your 
leather into turpentine, then into black ground in oil; 
streak your panel with this; use white in the same 
way; when the black has stood a little while, blend 
them well together as you go on; then put in a few 
touches of solid white, and soften. 

Black Bardella. 

Ground colour, a very light lead colour. With a 
feather and black, figure all over in lines running into 
each other, very close in places, some very fine, with 
short lines or strokes crossing; soften a little. When 
dry, glaze over with thin white, a little stronger in 
some places than others; touch up the lines with fine 
lines of black. 


Derbyshire Spar. 

This is a compound of the fossil remains of shell-fish 
and other inhabitants of the deep. Ground colour, a 
light gray. Glaze over your panel with a thin colour, 
made with Vandyke brown and black; rub in a little 
Indian red occasionally. Crumple a piece of paper in 
your hand, lightly dab your work over with it; now 
take a rag and a narrow square-pointed stick, and form 
the halves of shells, fish, bones, &c.; then spurt in a 
little turpentine,—this will open or spot it. W T hen dry, 
glaze over with the same colours, and make the fossils 
partly solid with white; then sharpen or edge them 
with a fine line of black. 


GRAINING AND IMITATING. 


175 


Granites. 

There are several granites; they may be done almost 
any colour and yet be correct. The principal ones are 
the gray and the red, or Aberdeen granite. You may 
do them all in the same manner. Prepare the ground, 
if for gray, a light gray; if for red, a light salmon 
colour. Provide yourself with a flat brush made of 
very stiff bristles, about an inch long and four inches 
broad ; shape a piece of wood about six inches square, 
with a handle to it something like a child’s battledore; 
rub in your ground colour; now dip the flat brush in 
thin black, hold the wood in your left hand, and press 
the brush upon it, springing the bristles in the direc¬ 
tion of the panel; this will throw the colour on in 
spots. Follow in the same manner with white, if for 
gray granite; and with black, red, and white, if for 
Aberdeen. They may be done in the following manner 
with good effect:—Provide yourself with a very porous 
or open sponge; dip it into black, mixed with beer; 
then stipple your ground with it; when dry, throw in 
your white in oil colour; and so on with any other 
colour. In all glazing colours it is advisable to use 
a little sugar of lead, as they are most of them bad 
dryers. I should also recommend Rowney’s tube 
colours for finishing marbles, as they are the best 
colours, are very finely ground, and are as cheap in 
the end as any you may grind yourself. 


176 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


To Polish Imitation Marbles. 

When you have finished marbling, let the work 
stand for a day or two; then gently rub it down with 
the back or smooth side of a sheet of sand-paper; this 
will take off the knits or bits of skin which may be 
upon it, without scratching it; now give it three coats 
of the best pale polishing copal varnish, allowing an 
interval of two days between each coat. Let this stand 
for three weeks; then cut it down with ground pumice- 
stone and water, using a piece of wash-leather or rag 
for that purpose. When you have got it tolerably 
smooth and level, wash it well with plenty of clean 
water, taking particular care to clean off all the pu¬ 
mice-stone; give it five coats of varnish. It ought 
now to stand for three or six months, at the least, 
before it is polished, for if it is done before it is 
almost certain to crack. When the varnish is suffi¬ 
ciently hard, cut it down with finely-ground pumice- 
stone as before; then use rotten stone and olive oil, 
using the ball of the hand; then use flour and oil; 
finish off with dry flour. This takes a deal of time to 
do properly, if well done. 


STAINING. 


177 


STAINING. 

Staining is an important part of the painter’s and 
varnisher’s trade, and consists in the main in washing 
or laying on the stains in the form of mere washes, so 
as to change the shade of the wood to a darker or 
warmer color; or, at most, to make wood, which in its 
natural grain resembles another, correspond in color 
also. The wood to be stained should, if possible, be 
placed horizontally. If this cannot be done, as little of 
the stain as possible should be used, so that it may not 
run down and dry in streaks which would subse¬ 
quently be darker than the general surface. A stain 
to show at its best must exhibit a tone of color which 
comes from a combination of the color of the wood and 
the pigment or stain used, on the same principle as 
glazing and graining. Hence the more transparent 
the color used the better the stain. To keep the ends 
of the work from taking so much pigment from the 
stain as to partially or entirely hide the grain and 
color of the wood, the use of transparent wax may be 
recommended. For this purpose warm small bits of 
the wax so that they will stick to the wood, then melt 
them down with a broad spatula or limber putty 
knife, heated over an argand lamp, or any other heater 
free from smoke. Melt down the wax and spread it 
on the surface and rub it into the pores. The ends 
may, of course, be filled with starch or silica fillers, but 
the trouble is to get enough on to even up the surface, 
and not to have it show the color of the filler, or make 
an opaque covering which will hide the color of the 
wood. The beauty of tone in graining and glazing is 
12 


178 


PAINTER, GIRDER, AND VARNISHER. 

in having the ground-work show through the grain¬ 
ing color, or glazing modified by the rich tones of the 
color in the graining color or glazing used. The same 
rule applies to staining, otherwise the work may just 
as well be given a solid color. 

The stain is applied with a sponge or large brush, 
the wood having been previously well rubbed with 
glass paper, and the dust thus made having been care¬ 
fully removed. The stain should be sparingly applied, 
and should be well rubbed in, the desired depth of 
color being obtained by repeated application rather 
than by a dark and heavy one ; for the wood if satu¬ 
rated with the watery mixture is liable to retain some 
of the moisture, although it may appear dry exter¬ 
nally, and warping or twisting may result; and fur¬ 
ther the natural grain of the wood is better brought out 
by two or three transparent washes than by a single 
dark and opaque one. Several excellent stains may be 
purchased ready for use, but in case these cannot be 
obtained a few receipts for making stains are here 
given. 

Blue Stains. 

1. A beautiful blue stain is obtained by gradually 
stirring £ oz. finely powdered indigo into 4 ozs. sul¬ 
phuric acid of 60 per cent., and exposing this mixture 
to a temperature of 77° F. for 12 hours. The mass is 
then poured into 6 quarts of rain water and filtered 
through felt. This filtered liquid is several times ap¬ 
plied to the wood until the desired color has been ob¬ 
tained. The more the solution is diluted with water, 
the lighter will be the color. 

2. Indigo solution, or a concentrated hot solution of 
blue vitriol, followed by the application of a solution 
of washing soda. 


STAINING. 


179 


3. Dissolve 1 oz. of best indigo carmine in £ pint of 
water and repeatedly apply the solution to the wood. 

4. Brush the wood over with a strong, hot solution 
of nitrate of copper in water, and then go over it with 
a hot solution of carbonate of soda, 2 ozs. to 1 pint of 
water. 


Cherry stain . 

Boil 4 ozs. of annatto in 3 quarts of clean rain water 
in a brass or copper kettle until the color of the 
annatto is imparted to the water. Then add | oz. of 
potash and keep the mixture hot for 30 minutes longer. 
When then cool enough to handle, it is ready for use. 
To make this into an oil stain, boil the stain down, 
after the potash has been added, to three pints, and 
then add 3 pints of boiled oil. 

Ebony Stains. 

Digest nutgalls in acetate of tin and rub this liquid 
well into the wood, and then polish it when dry. 

Most of the dyes for staining wood a black color re¬ 
quire to be applied very hot so as to penetrate the fibre 
of the wood, but enamel blacks can be laid on like 
paint or rubbed in like polish. The following formula 
belongs to the latter class : 

Mix lamp black with French polish, and then use 
the mixture in the same manner as ordinary polish is 
used. 

For a dye that is to be used warm, soft woods easily 
take the stain, but hard woods require either to be 
warmed or else the decoction applied hot. 

Boil 8| ozs. nutgalls and 37 ozs. logwood in a quart 
of soft water for one hour in a copper vessel. Filter 
the decoction and apply warm. 


180 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

To prepare a superior ebony stain for pear or walnut 
wood, boil 40 parts of gallnuts, 4 of rasped logwood 
and 5 each of sulphate of iron and verdigris with 
water. Strain this mixture through linen, apply the 
warm fluid to the wood, and then give it four coats of 
warm solution of iron filings in 75 parts of vinegar. 

A common black dye for wood is prepared by dis¬ 
solving £ oz. of extract of logwood in 36 ozs. of hot 
water and when the solution has cooled, but is not 
quite cold, add ^ oz. of potassium chromate. Strain 
he mixture and repeatedly apply it to the wood until 
r. dark brown color is obtained. This brown is con¬ 
verted into a black by using a wash composed of iron 
filings, the depth of the black being increased by the 
number of coatings of the latter fluid laid on. 

The following formula gives good results : Boil 1 lb. 
of logwood in 1 gallon of water; while boiling put in 
two handfuls of walnut peel or shells, allow the boil¬ 
ing to continue for a little while, scoop out the log¬ 
wood chips and pour in 1 pint of vinegar. Use the 
decoction boiling hot. 

Boil over a slow fire 1 gallon of vinegar, 4 ozs. of 
Paris blue, 2 ozs. of nutgalls, and 2 lbs. of extract of 
logwood, and then put in a half-pint measure of ferric 
oxide. Use the stain while warm. 

To produce a polish on ebony or black stained wood, 
give the wood one or two coats of fine copal varnish, 
and when this is dry rub it down smooth with pumice 
stone; then put on a second coat of varnish, and rub 
this down with rottenstone. Cleanse and put on a 
flowing coat of best spirit copal varnish, and when 
this has become dry, polish with chamois leather and 
the palm of the hand. 


STAINING. 


181 


Mahogany Stains. 

For mahogany stain for light woods, make a strong 
stain of red sanders by steeping it in alcohol, and mix 
it with asphaltum stain, which may be done by stir¬ 
ring a little oil of turpentine into the red sanders. Go 
over the work with this stain, using either a brush or 
rag as may be the most convenient, and repeat the op¬ 
eration until the desired shade is obtained. Put in 
the dark veins with clear asphaltum stain, using a 
small bristle brush. 

Introduce into a bottle alkanet root 15 parts, aloes 
30, powdered dragon’s blood 30, and 95 per cent, alcohol 
500. Close the bottle with a piece of bladder and keep 
it in a warm place for 3 or 4 days, shaking it occasion¬ 
ally ; then filter the liquid. The wood is first mor¬ 
danted with citric acid and allowed to dry. The 
veins may be imitated by the skillful application of 
acetate of iron. 

A cheaper preparation is as follows : Boil madder 8 
ozs. and logwood 2 ozs. with 1 gallon of water for one 
hour. Filter the decoction while still warm and ap¬ 
ply the liquor to the wood. When dry apply a solu¬ 
tion of pearl ash, two drachms to the quart. 

For a light mahogany stain dissolve 2 ozs. of dragon’s 
blood in 1 quart of oil of turpentine, keeping the ves¬ 
sel in a warm jilace and frequently shaking it. When 
solution is complete apply the mixture to the work. 

The following process is recommended by Wieder- 
liold : The coarse wood is first coated with a colored 
size, which is prepared by thoroughly mixing up, in a 
warm solution, 1 part of ordinary glue in 6 of water, a 
sufficient quantity of the commercial mahogany 
brown, which is in reality an iron oxide and in color 
stands between the so-called English red and iron ox- 


182 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VAENISHEB, 

ide. This is best effected by adding in excess a suffi¬ 
cient quantity of the dry color to the warm solution 
of glue, and thoroughly mixing the mass by means of 
a brush until a uniform paste is obtained in which no 
more dry red particles are seen. A trial coat is then 
laid upon a piece of wood. If it is desired to give a 
light mahogany color to the work, it is only necessary 
to add les§, and for a darker color more, of the brown 
body color. When the coat is dry, it may be tested, 
by rubbing with the fingers, whether the color easily 
separates or not. In the former case more glue must 
be added until the dry trial coat no longer perceptibly 
rubs off with the hands. Having ascertained in this 
way the right condition of the size-color with respect 
to tint and strength, it is then warmed slightly and 
worked through a hair sieve by means of a brush. 
After this it is rubbed upon the wood surface with the 
brush, which has been carefully washed. It is not 
necessary to keep the color warm during the painting. 
Should it become thick by gelatinizing, it may be laid 
on the wood with the brush, and dries more rapidly 
than when too thin. If the wood is porous and ab¬ 
sorbs much color, a second coat may be laid on the 
first when dry, which will in all cases be sufficient. 
On drying the size-color appears dull and unsightly, 
but the following coat immediately changes the ap¬ 
pearance of the surface. This coat is spirit varnish. 
For its production 3 parts 90 per cent, alcohol are 
added to 1 part of red acaroid resin in one vessel, and 
in another 40 parts of 80 per cent, alcohol to 10 parts 
of shellac. By repeated agitation for 3 or 4 days, the 
spirit dissolves the resin completely. The shellac so¬ 
lution is then carefully poured from the sediment, or 
better still, filtered through a cloth. It may show a 


STAINING. 


183 


slight milky turbidity, which, however, is no detri¬ 
ment to its use. The resin solution is best filtered into 
the shellac solution by pouring through a funnel 
loosely packed with wadding. When filtered the so¬ 
lutions of both resins are mixed by agitating the ves¬ 
sel and letting the varnish stand a few days. The 
acaroid resin colors the shellac and imparts to it at the 
same time the degree of suppleness usually obtained 
by the addition of Venice turpentine or linseed oil. 
If the varnish is to be employed as a coat, the upper 
layers are poured off at once from the vessel. One or 
two coats suffice, as a rule, to give the wood an ex¬ 
ceedingly pleasing effect. The coats dry very quickly, 
and care must be taken not to apply the second coat 
until the first is completely dry. 

Oak Stains. 

Mix powdered ochre, Venetian red and umber, in 
size in proportions to suit; or a richer stain may be 
made with raw sienna, burnt sienna, and Vandyke 
brown. A light yellow stain of raw sienna alone is 
very effective. 

An excellent oak stain is made by mixing 2 ozs. of 
American potash and 2 ozs. of pearl-ash in 1 quart of 
water. Should the color be darker than required, it 
may be diluted with water. It must be used very 
carefully, as the potash will blister the hands if al¬ 
lowed to touch them. The mixture should also be 
laid on with a very common brush, as it softens the 
hair so as to render it of very little value afterwards. 

A good brown oak stain is produced by preparing 
the wood with a solution of 1 oz. of catechu boiled in 
1| pints of water. When dry brush over a solution of 
bichromate of potash, 1 oz. to 1^ pints of water. 


184 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Red Stains. 

1. Boil 1 lb. of Brazil wood in 1 gallon of water for 
three hours or more ; add 1 oz. of pearl ash and apply 
the decoction to the wood whilst hot. Then brush 
over a solution of 2 ozs. of alum in 1 quart of water. 

2. A decoction of archil forms a very good red stain 
for common work. Two or three washes of it should 
be given, after which it should be brushed over with a 
hot solution of pearl-ash and water. 

Rosewood Stains. 

Boil ^ lb. of logwood in 3 pints of water until the 
decoction is of a dark red color, then add J oz. of tartar. 
Apply three or four coats of this liquid, which must be 
boiling hot, to the wood, allowing each coat to dry 
thoroughly before laying on another. Veins may be 
formed in this with black stain, using grainer’s combs 
or other implements. 

Immerse \ lb. red sanders wood and £ lb. of potash 
in 1 gallon of hot water. When the color of the wood 
is extracted, 2J lbs. of gum-shellac are to be added, and 
dissolved over a quick fire. The mixture may then loe 
used over the stain above described. 

Bring alcohol 1 gallon, and camwood 2 ozs., into a 
bottle, and let stand in a warm place for 24 hours. 
Then add 3 ozs. of extract of logwood and 1 oz. of 
nitric acid. When all is dissolved the stain is ready 
for use. 

Walnut Stains. 

Vandyke brown (dry) 5 ozs.; bichromate of potash, 
\ oz.; washing soda, 3 ozs.; water, 2 quarts. 

Boil ten or fifteen minutes, and put it on, either hot 
or cold, with a brush. Let the work get thoroughly 
dry before oiling or varnishing. 


STAINING. 


185 


Boiled linseed oil, 1 oz.; gum asphaltum, 1 oz.; tur¬ 
pentine, 4 ozs.; and a little Venetian red to give it the 
warm tone. 

This answers very well for any soft wood if put on 
evenly. 

Light Walnut. Dissolve potassium permanganate 
1 part, in pure water 30 parts, and apply the solution 
twice in succession after an interval of 5 minutes. 
Wash with clean water, and when dry, oil and polish. 

The same formula may be used for dark walnut, but 
after washing with water the dark veins are made 
more prominent with a solution of iron acetate. 

Another walnut stain is made by mixing £ lb. of 
dry burnt umber with one quart of hpt vinegar. Put 
it on with a brush, let it dry, then oil or varnish as 
desired. 

On white wood or poplar, a strong solution in water 
of the extract of walnut peel makes a good stain. 
Coat the work over once or twice, according to the 
shade wanted, then when half dry go over it with a 
solution of bichromate of potash made by dissolving 
1 oz. of the potash in 6 ozs. of water. When dry, finish 
as desired. 

Practical Experiments in Producing New Colors upon 
Wood with Known Coloring Matter. 

The coloring matters used are, according to their 
nature, either concentrated decoctions or solutions. 
To produce the desired color the stained wood is treated 
with the respective chemical agent. 

Decoction of logwood treated with : 

Gives: 

Concentrated hydrochloric acid . . Reddish yellow. 
Dilute hydrochloric acid ..... Reddish. 


186 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Concentrated and dilute nitric acid. Red. 

Concentrated sulphuric acid .... Black. 

Dilute sulphuric acid.Red. 

Sulphide of hydrogen.Yellow-brown. 

Ferric nitrate.Black. 

Potassium chromate.Black. 

Stannous chloride.Violet. 

Tartaric acid.Gray-brown. 

Sulphate of copper.Dark gray. 

Tannin.Yellow red. 

Sal ammoniac.Yellow. 

Verdigris.Dark brown. 

Sugar of lead.Gray-brown. 

Potash.Dark red. 

Potassium permanganate.Light brown. 

Potassium iodide.Red-yellow. 

Cupric chloride.{ Reddish violet to 

t dark brown. 

Chrome yellow . ..Dark violet. 

Soda.Violet. 

Sulphate of iron .Gray to black. 

Alum.Dark red-brown. 

Carbonate of potash.Yellow-brown. 

Magnesium sulphate.. . Brown. 

Cupric nitrate...Violet. 

Aqua ammoniae.Dark violet. 

Potassium sulphocyanide.Red. 

Zinc chloride.Red-brown. 


Decoction of Fustic extract treated with: 

Gives: 

Concentrated hydrochloric acid . . Red. 

Dilute hydrochloric acid.Yellow-brown. 

Concentrated nitric acid.Reddish-yellow. 



























STAINING. 


187 


Dilute nitric acid.Brown. 

Concentrated sulphuric acid .... Dark purple. 

Dilute sulphuric acid.Brown-red. 

Aqua ammonise.Dark yellow. 

Ammonium sulphydrate.Dark yellow. 

Ferric nitrate.Dark gray-yellow. 

Tannin.Yellow. 

Potash.Yellow. 

Stannous chloride.Yellow. 

Cupric chloride.Yellow. 

Tartaric acid.Yellow. 

Alum.Yellow. 

Pyrogallic acid.Yellow. 

Cupric sulphate.Orange. 

Sugar of lead.Yellow. 

Potassium permanganate.Brownish-yellow. 


Decoction of Brazil wood extract treated with: 


Gives: 

Concentrated nitric acid.Dark purple. 

Dilute nitric acid.Pale red. 

Concentrated sulphuric acid .... Red. 

Dilute sulphuric acid.Purple. 

Concentrated hydrochloric acid . . Dark red. 

Dilute hydrochloric acid.Light red. 

Aqua ammonise.Dark red. 

Ammonium sulphydrate.Dark red. 

Sulphide of hydrogen.Light red. 

Sulphate of iron.Dark violet. 

Tannin.No change. 

Stannous chloride.Light red. 

Cupric chloride.Dark red. 

. Sal ammoniac.Reddish yellow. 

Sugar of lead.Yellowish red. 





























188 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Potash.Dark crimson. 

Tartaric acid.Reddish yellow. 


Decoction of madder treated with: 


Gives: 


Dilute hydrochloric, sulphuric or 

nitric acid. 

Sugar of lead. 

Soda. . . 

Tartaric acid. 

Tannin. 

Potash. 

Sal ammoniac. 

Aqua ammonise. 

Alum. 

Stannous chloride. 


Pale yellow. 
Reddish violet. 
Red. 

Pale yellow. 
Pale yellow. 
Light red. 

Pale yellow. 
Reddish yellow. 
Faint red. 

Light red. 


Decoction of French berries treated with: 

Gives: 


Dilute hydrochloric acid 
Dilute nitric acid . . . 
Dilute sulphuric acid . 

Potash. 

Stannous chloride . 

Tartaric acid. 

Sugar of lead. 

Ammonium sulphydrate 
Potassium bichromate . 

Ferric nitrate. 

Potassium iodide . . . 
Cupric sulphate .... 


Rose color. 

No change. 
Yellow. 

Yellow. 

Dark yellow. 
Discoloration. 
Dark yellow. 
Faint yellow. 
Brown-yellow. 
Dark olive green. 
Yellow. 

Greenish-yellow. 


Decoction of turmeric treated with: 

Gives: 

Hydrochloric, nitric or sulphuric 
acid.Yellow. 



























STAINING. 


189 


Sulphate of iron . 

Ferric nitrate . . 

Sugar of lead . . 

Alum. 

Potash. 

Stannous chloride 
Sodium. 


Greenish-yellow. 

Yellow to dark 
yellow. 

Yellow. 

Yellow. 

Red-yellow. 

Yellow. 

Yellow. 









190 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


INSTRUCTIONS FOR SIGN-WRITING. 


Sign-writing is a mere mechanical art; any person 
with a common stock of perseverance may acquire it. 
The writer is bound down to certain set forms, and to 
a constant repetition of those forms; there is nothing 
left for the exercise of genius or taste, but the arrange* 
ment or setting out and choice of colours. 

The pupil’s first object must be to acquire a tho¬ 
rough practical knowledge of the forms of letters now 
in common use, such as manuscript or text-hand, Roman 
capitals, italics, Egyptian, block, &c. &c. The best 
models for this purpose are placards in bold type; if 
good, they are generally proportionate, and have all the 
modern improvements. To become a good sign-writer, 
you must first practise the manuscript or text-hand; 
by doing so you will acquire the habit of making a free 
and graceful stroke, or sweep with the pencil, which 
will be very serviceable to you when you practise the 
Roman capital, which you should do next. When you 
have mastered these, the others will be comparatively 
easy. Many learners begin with the plain Egyptian 
block, for the simple reason that it is the easiest. They 
never make good writers, from the fact that by doing so 
they acquire a stiffness in the use of the pencil, and 
formation of the letters, which they very rarely, if ever, 



SIGN-WRITING. 


191 


get rid of For practising, you will require a smooth 
board about three feet square, painted a light colour. 
Secondly, a stick, with a ball of cotton wool covered with 
wash-leather, and tied over one end of the stick : this is 
to prevent it injuring the paint when you rest it against 
it Thirdly, a small palette-board and palette-knife. 
Fourthly, a few good sable and camel-hair pencils. When 
purchasing the pencils, dip them into a tumbler of water, 
and try them on a piece of paper: if they retain a fine 
point they are good; if not they are not worth having. 
Fifthly, a pennyworth of unburnt pipe-stumps, which 
you will get at any pipe-maker’s. Sixth, a two-foot 
rule. Seventh, a pair of compasses. 

Now set out your board as follows :—Take your rule, 
or compasses, and divide the board into equal parts 
with horizontal lines, leaving say three inches for the 
size of the letters, and two inches for the space between 
each line of letters. Use a piece of pipe-chalk, and 
slightly sketch your letters with it; then mix vegetable 
black with boiled oil to a proper consistency for work¬ 
ing; with this, and a fine pencil, endeavour to form the 
letters. Use the point of the pencil in all cases, and 
strive all you can to form the letter in outline with as 
few strokes as possible, filling up between the lines with 
a short pencil. By following this principle you will 
acquire ease, rapidity of execution, and correctness of 
outline. Practise this method constantly, and you will 
become a good writer. Before your black is dry, wash it 
off with turpentine, then with soap and water: this will 
clean your board ready for practising again. 


192 PAINTER, GIEDER, AND VARNISHER. 

a 'Setting-out or Arrangement of Letters. 

This is a very important part of sign-writing; for, 
however good the shape of the letters may be, if they 
are not properly arranged the effect will be bad. By 
strict attention to the following rules, you will soon be 
able to set out a sign properly:— 

1. It is always desirable to introduce into a sign a 
curved line, or section of a circle, as it is pleasing to the 
eye, and relieves the stiffness of the straight lines. 

2. The space between each letter in the same line 
must be equal. 

3. Each line of letters must begin and end at an 
equal distance from the side of the board. 

4. Never, if you can possibly avoid it, begin or end 
a line of letters with such letters as “ and—to—for— 
with,” &c.; but let them come in between the lines 
of larger letters. 

5. Always make the most important words, such as 
the name, business, &c., the largest, most distinct, and 
easily read of any on the board. You will see exactly 
what I mean if you examine a good placard. It is only 
by strict attention to the above rules, and constant prac¬ 
tice, that you can become a good writer. 

To raise or make Letters appear to stand out from the 
Board , and to shadow them. 

For this purpose you require a knowledge of light 
and shade; to acquire that knowledge, as far as regards 
letters, I would advise you to get a few good letters cut 
out of wood, say an inch thick; fasten these on a painted 


SIGN-WRITING. 


193 


board; place them in a position where a side light will 
Call strongly upon them: they will exhibit to you their 
true principle of light and shade. Study them well in 
all positions; they will be your best guide. 

To gild Letters. 

You will require a gilder’s tip-cusliion and knife, or 
you can lay on the gold from the book, by cutting the 
leaves to the size you want with a pair of scissors. You 
may use either oil or japanner’s gold size; oil-size is the 
best, and is made in the following manner:—Procure 
some old or fat linseed-oil; the older it is the better. 
Mix a little Oxford ochre with it, and a small quantity 
of sugar of lead; thin it with boiled oil; now strain it 
through a piece of fine linen. Prepare your board as 
smoothly as possible; take the white of an egg, beat it 
up in about four times its weight of cold water; add a 
small quantity of fuller’s earth; brush over the board 
with it; this is to prevent the gold sticking to any part 
but the letters. When dry, set out the letters and com¬ 
mence writing; a sable pencil is the best for laying on 
the size. Always remember that, to make your gold 
bright, you must use as little size as possible, consistent 
with covering the letters properly; let it stand until you 
can barely feel a slight tack or stickiness. If the size is 
Erood it will gild in a week after it is written. Your 
letters being ready, put some gold into your cushion, 
which you will do in this way:—Carefully open, and 
with a slight puff with your mouth blow the leaf of gold 
into the back part of the cushion ; now take a leaf up on 
the point of your knife, and spread it on the front part 
13 


194 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

of the cushion; when you have got it partially straight, 
give it a slight puff with your breath, which will make 
it perfectly so. Cut it to the sizes you want, using the 
heel of your knife, and cutting forward. You will find 
this very difficult at first; but persevere, and you will 
soon do it with ease, and without waste. Now take the 
tip, rub it lightly on your hair or whiskers, take up the 
gold on the point and place it gently on the letters; 
when you have covered them all, get some very fine 
cotton wool, entirely free from grit; with this gently 
rub the gold until it appears smooth, bright, and level. 
Now wash the sign with plenty of clean water, to clear 
off the egg-size. 

To Write , Gild , and Ornament on Glass. 

Before you commence this work you must acquire a 
thorough knowledge of sign-writing, otherwise it will 
be folly to attempt it. You will require a drawing on 
paper for each design, which you will prepare as fol¬ 
lows:—Cut a piece of thin paper to the size of your 
glass, draw out your design correctly in black lead-pencil 
on the paper, then prick through the outline of the 
letters with a fine needle. Tie up a little dry white lead 
in a piece of rag; this is a pounce-bag. Now place 
your design upon the glass right side up, and dust it 
with the pounce-bag; take the paper carefully off. the 
design will appear in white dots upon the glass; this is 
to guide you in laying on the gold on the opposite side. 
Now clean the glass well on the side that the gold is to 
go on ; prepare your size in the following manner:— 
'ret some perfectly clean water, without the slightest 


SIGN-WRITING. 


195 


particle of grease or other foreign matter; put it on a 
slow fire to boil, using an enamelled saucepan for that 
purpose, and taking particular care that the smoke does 
not get into it; while boiling, put in two or three shreds 
of the very best isinglass; let it boil a few minutes, 
then strain it through a fine clean linen rag; when cool 
it is ready for use. The great point in glass-gilding 
is to have the glass, the size, and every thing you use 
perfectly clean; a touch of the finger on the glass will 
tarnish the gold; you must use the tip and cushion to 
put on the gold, laying the gold on as level as possible, 
as its uniform brightness depends in a great measure 
upon that point; use a flat camel-hair tool for laying 
on the size; flow the size on, and let it drain off 
when you put the gold on ; when perfectly dry, take 
a ball of the finest cotton wool, and gently rub or 
polish the gold; you can then lay on another coat of 
gold if desirable; it is now ready for writing. As 
the letters will have to be written the backward way, 
you must turn your drawing face side downwards, and 
pounce as before; but on tbe gold this time mix a 
little of the best vegetable black with black japan; 
thin with turpentine to a proper ’working consistency; 
write with this when thoroughly dry; wash off the 
superfluous gold, and shade as in sign-writing. In 
ornaments you will have to etch, or shade the gold: 
you will proceed to lay on the gold and pounce the 
ornament exactly as above; then etch or shade it 
with the point of a slate-pencil, or piece of hard 
wood, slightly wetting the wood, when you want a 
broad or black line; then pick in with black. 


1C 6 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


COMPLETE INSTRUCTIONS 
FOR COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING 


A suitable place to do work in is an important con¬ 
sideration in painting, but as workmen will have opinions 
of their own about making things convenient, 1 will not 
take time to go into details about conveniences in con¬ 
structing shops or paint rooms; only this I will say to 
the uninitiated: you must have a room where you can 
exclude dust entirely, and means for ventilating the room 
whenever you wish. These qualifications are indispen¬ 
sable. 

The first thing that presents itself is the mode of pre¬ 
paring the oil used in painting, and, as this is a disputed 
point, and a very important one, I will give such reasons 
for my opinion as have been gathered from thirty years’ 
practical experience in the trade. Those who learned 
their trade thirty years ago were taught to use boiled oil 
in carriage-painting, and we are not apt to forsake our 
early teachings without convincing proofs of their fal¬ 
lacy. I have, by experience, been driven from my good 
opinion of boiled oil in almost every department of paint¬ 
ing. Its supposed advantages are that it dries quicker 
and flows over the surface of the wood better than raw 
oil. Its positive disadvantages are that it is more brittle 




COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


197 


when dry; if braised, will break from the wood, and 
unless the utmost pains are taken to get it thoroughly 
dry, the varnish that is put over it will crack after it has 
been exposed to the sun. We are deceived about its 
drying quicker, and that is the cause why paint and var¬ 
nish erack. Boiled oil gets its drying quality from the 
oxygen which it imbibes by heating, and the oxyds of 
lead which are put into it while boiling. There is no 
visible part of the lead used for dryer left in the oil when 
it is ready for use, therefore I suppose the oxyd which 
it absorbs from the lead is the dryer—be that as it may, 
there is one thing certain, we know oil so prepared will 
not dry unless it comes in contact with the air. Corked 
in a bottle, it will never dry, and this is one great diffi¬ 
culty in using boiled oil. Suppose we have painted a 
piece of wood with one coat and got it thoroughly dry, 
the air, oil, or turpentine cannot go through the coat of 
paint when the second coat is applied. The part of the 
second coat which is exposed to the air dries on the out¬ 
side, forming a skin which prevents the air from getting 
to the drying quality of the inner part, and shuts it up 
almost as close as if it were corked up. The air being so 
penetrating will, after a long time, get to it and dry it; 
but it takes a long time, unless the paint with which it 
is mixed can impart to it a drying quality independent 
of the atmosphere. Painters who use boiled oil obviate 
this difficulty by mixing a large proportion of turpentine 
with the oil or paint, making what they call a dead coat—• 
this, when the turpentine has evaporated, dries without 
a gloss, and leaves the paint open like a sponge, so that 
the air can get to the oil. Experience proves this to be 
the poorest kind of paint to last—if bruised, it breaks off 


198 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

clear to the wood; if left to time it comes off very soon 
in small scales—yet there is a great quantity oi work 
done in this way, because the paint can be rubbed down 
smooth with sandpaper easier than if it were of a 
tougher material. Before J get through, 1 hope to show 
that paint can be made smoother and as tough as 
you wish without using much sandpaper, and with less 
labor. Boiled oil will not bear much japan for a dryer. 
If too much is used the paint comes off in large scales, 
and leaves the carriage in the very worst condition for 
repainting. 

Raw oil dries with less gloss, leaving a chance for the 
air to penetrate the paint as well as the dead color, and, 
aside from that, the dryer used in the paint dries more 
independent of the action of the atmosphere. For 
instance, I have seen red lead ground in oil and soldered 
up in tin cans so as to entirely exclude the air, and in 
one year the paint would become a hard cement. Boiled 
oil, under the same circumstances, would never dry 
without the red lead. 

A ship-painter will never use boiled oil about any part 
of the vessel that is exposed to jamming by the dock, 
because the paint will break off clean to the wood. For 
these reasons I should use raw in preference to boiled 
oil, with but very few cases excepted. 

To prepare raw oil for use, it will be necessary to add 
one-fifth part of good brown japan to four of oil. If 
paint requires any further dryer, equal parts of sugar of 
lead and white vitriol ground together can be used, to 
the amount of one ounce to the pound of paint, or the 
same amount of patent dryer. 

For the priming coat of a carriage-gearing and body 


199 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 

use the same kind of paint, to wit: white lead mixed in 
the above prepared raw oil, and about one eighth part 
turpentine, with a shade of lampblack, if your carriage 
is to be a dark color. When the wood-work of a car¬ 
riage comes into the shop, examine it closely, and if the 
grain has raised in any place, or it wants smoothing with 
sandpaper, be sure and do it before you prime the work, 
then dust it off and put on the priming coat even, and 
be sure to have the paint go into the cracks, checks, or 
screw-heads, so that they have at least one coat of paint 
over the surface which is to be puttied up. 

The carriage-part wants but one coat before it is 
ironed, but the body you will retain in the shop while 
the gearing is being ironed. After it has had four days’ 
drying, and has been sandpapered off, give another coat 
of the same kind of paint with a little dryer, and about 
one fourth as much turpentine as oil. 

The object now is to get a perfectly even surface on 
the work of the body, which cannot be done on the bare 
wood, on account of the grain of the timber. For this 
purpose a heavy coat of coarse paint, prepared so that 
it will dry as hard as a bone, is put on, and, after it is 
dry, is rubbed with a flat surface of pumice-stone in 
water, which rubs the paint off from the ridges down 
even with the hollows, thereby making the surface level 
and smooth. To facilitate this operation I have adopted 
something different from the old way, which is better 
and easier. I have some fine-grained sole leather cut 
into pieces so that I can have three different ones, with 
a. straight-edge of from one to three inches in width, 
these edges are made rounding and smooth with sand¬ 
paper. 


200 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

After the turpentine has evaporated from this second 
coat which we have put on, and before it is dry, 1 take 
one of these leathers in my fingers very much as 1 would 
a scraper, and draw the edge over the soft paint. This 
crowds the paint from off the ridges down into the hol¬ 
lows, and levels it quicker and better than two coats of 
“ rough-stuff” will. The parts which are not going to 
be rough stuffed, such as the spindles to the seat, or any 
such small place, I rub over with my hand and fingers, 
so that I get the paint crowded into the grains of the 
wood, and all the brush marks are removed. After 
repeating this process the second time on the seat and 
part which is not to be rough-stuffed, it will be ready for 
putting on the color. I make my putty of whiting and 
good drying varnish; and when the paint has got dry on 
the body, the screw-heads, and other places where the 
rough-stuffing is to be put on, should be filled up more 
than level, and the surplus will be cut off with the 
rough-stuff. 

Now the body is ready for the rough-stuffing, which 
should be made of about seven parts of yellow ochre to 
one of white lead, mixed in four parts of good drying 
varnish and one of brown japan, and about one fifteenth 
as much raw oil as you have of copal varnish and japan 
together. 

This mixture should be stirred together as thick as it 
can be conveniently run through the mill. It is not 
best to grind it fine; but as near the same fineness as 
can be. After it has been run through the mill, reduce 
it with turpentine, so that it will work easy under the 
brush, and apply a good coat to the part of the body that 
has a large surface, so that you can get at it with a 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 201 

pumice-stone to level it down. It will take five or sis 
days for a coat to dry so that you can apply the next, 
and, as a general thing, three coats of rough-stuff will be 
sufficient for a carriage-body. Sometimes one coat will 
answer for a buggy ; it depends, in a great measure, on 
the skilfulness of the wood-workman in getting a level 
and smooth surface on his job. 

If he leaves hollows, there must be enough applied to 
fill them up even with the more prominent parts of the 
surface. After the body has got sufficient rough-stuffing 
on, it had better go to the smith, to be ironed and hung 
on the carriage. When it comes to the paint-shop 
again, the first thing will be to rub it down, so that you 
have a smooth and even surface, free from all dents, 
grains of the wood, tool-marks, or any thing in the way of 
making a good, even surface, to put the finishing coat of 
paint on. This operation does not require any very 
great amount of genius, but there cannot be too much 
care bestowed on it. Saw the pumice-stone into blocks 
of a suitable size, and have by you a small, round file, so 
that you can shape the stone to fit the mouldings, if 
necessary; and a pail of water and sponge, to wet the 
work with and wash it off, while rubbing it down. Now 
wet the work trith the sponge, and with a wet block of 
stone commence rubbing the part until it is smooth and 
level, rubbing carefully into the corners and close to the 
mouldings, so that every part is equally level and smooth. 
You will have to use the sponge frequently, to clean the 
paint and see if you are not rubbing through to the 
wood, or have got it rubbed enough. When the brush- 
marks are all rubbed out of your rough-stuffing, it will, 
as a general thing, be rubbed enough. Thera are often 


202 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISI1ER. 

places found, after rubbing down, where there .s a dent 
in the wood, so that the pumice-stone has not cut out 
the brush-marks. To remedy such places, take the putty 
that you have filled up the screw-heads with, and, if it is 
not soft enough, add a little varnish, so as to make 
it soft enough to spread under the putty-knife; then 
fill the hollow places more than even full, and after it 
has become dry, which will be in three or four days, rub 
it off with the pumice-stone, so that the surface is level 
and smooth. In rubbing down, if the stone scratches, 
or makes creases in the paint, or gums on the stone, the 
paint is not dry enough, and should be left to dry until 
it gets so hard that it will not scratch. If, by mistake, 
you have rubbed through the paint, and wet the wood so 
as to raise the grain, when it gets dry rub off tbe raised 
grain with sandpaper, and put on the spot a coat of 
rough-stuffing, and when it is dry use a little linseed oil, 
instead of water, with the pumice-stone, which will not 
raise the grain of the wood, and, when it is rubbed off 
smooth, wipe the oil off with a rag, and clean the body 
off with a sponge and water, and it is ready for the color. 

It will be better now to commence the carriage part, 
and, in finishing that up so as to receive the color, I have 
adopted a different way from any that I ever have seen 
laid down, or in any way been taught; yet there are 
others who practice the same plan and keep it a secret. 
The old way is to mix the paint with enough turpentine 
to make it brittle when dry, then scour out the brush- 
marks with sandpaper. This rubs off nearly or quite one? 
half the paint, and, aside from that, the turpentine evapo¬ 
rates and does not leave enough oil in the paint to resist 
the action of the atmosphere and protect the wood. 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


203 


Also, sandpapering off the poisonous paint and inhaling 
the (.usi is one cause of the unhealthiness of the trade. 
The way I have adopted does away with these difficul¬ 
ties, and is much quicker done, and makes a handsomer 
finished job. Commence the carriage part by sandpaper¬ 
ing oh' just enough to remove the specks that may have 
fallen on the paint. 

If you are -going to paint the carriage with any color 
which of itself will be a body, it will be well to prepare 
the paint 01 the color that you are going to finish with, 
unless the paint is too expensive to use for a body-coat; 
and, if so, you should use the paint that is the nearest to 
it in color and at the same time has sufficient body—for 
instance, lor vermilion use red lead and Venetian red on 
the body or priming coat. White lead and lampblack, 
mixed so that it is a slate color, is a very good paint to 
give a body for any dark-colored finish. Mix the oil— 
which is prepared with one fifth japan—with one fourth 
as much turpentine; and when you want to reduce the 
paint, do it with this mixture, so that the paint will be 
alike in turpentine dryer. Dust off the work clean, and 
put on a coat of paint that is well ground, and perfectly 
clean from all skins, dirt, or specks of any kind. 

After the paint has stood a while, so that the turpen¬ 
tine has evaporated, commence by rubbing it with the 
palm of your hand and fingers, so that you obliterate all 
your brush-marks, and fill up the coarse grains to the 
timber by crowding the paint into them. Use a leather 
in corners where you cannot smooth with the hand, and 
use the leather on the springs, or any other flat surface, 
and then brush it over with the hand. In this way the 
work is very easily brought down to a smooth, polished 
surface 


204 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

After the second priming-coat has become dry, yon can 
putty up all imperfect joints or checks, and ail places 
where the iron does not fit to the wood closely on the 
felly, or any other part. After this coat of paint is well 
dried, sandpaper it off as before, just enough to remove 
the specks which may have fallen on while the paint w T as 
drying; and if you discover any place in the corners 
wdiere you have not smoothed it down with the hand, it 
will be best to smooth it with sandpaper, and then apply 
another coat, and go through the same process of rub¬ 
bing down with your hand. Three coats will be enough 
in this way to give sufficient body for the color. It will 
fill the grain of the timber so that it cannot be seen, and 
make a smoother and better coat than any other way I 
have tried. I think it saves full twenty-five per cent, in 
painting a carriage. 

You will now want to put on two coats of color to 
finish with, and you will observe the same process about 
smoothing it down. Also, remember that what makes 
paint and varnish crack after it has become dry, is, that 
it was not perfectly dried when the coats w r ere being put 
on. 

While the carriage has been painting, the irons on the 
body, and all places where you do not use rough-stuffing, 
should be worked with the same paint in the same way 
that the carriage has been; so that the wood gets three 
and the irons two coats of paint, and then the body is 
ready for the color. 

The color should be ground fine; and perhaps you will 
find it better to use more turpentine in the paint than 
you have for the carriage part. You need a room that 
is clean, and where no dust will be raised while the paint 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 205 

is drying, and you must have a soft, flat brush (called 
camel’s-hair), about two and a half inches wide, and 
those are best when the brush-part is only about one 
and a half inch long. Examine well to see that there 
are no loose hairs in it that will come out while painting. 
The surface of the body is now smooth and level, and 
the object is to get two coats of paint on for finishing, 
without leaving brush-marks, or any thing to destroy 
this smooth, level surface; therefore be sure and have 
your paint mixed so that it will run off from the brush 
easy, and be spread without bearing hard on the brush. 
It is best to try the paint before you commence laying it 
on the body, and when you are sure it will work easy, 
lay it on the body as briskly as you can, and do it well, 
finishing it up with light brushing. After it has got dry 
enough for the second coat, rub it over with curled hair, 
so that it takes off all the specks; and it will have a ten¬ 
dency to flatten down the brush-marks which are hardly 
perceptible. One more coat in the same way finishes 
the body, ready for striping. 

After putting on the second coat of color, and it has 
become sufficiently dry, take curled hair and rub it 
enough so as to flatten down any brush marks which 
your fine brush may have made. This will be a suffi¬ 
cient body for a medium good job, providing care has 
been taken to mix the paint according to the directions, 
and you have had no bad luck in putting it on. If you 
wish to have an extra good job, you must add more 
coats of the color, or finishing coats, being sure to give it 
time to dry, so that you have body enough to smooth it 
down and take out the brush marks with rotten-stone. 
This rubbing-down is done with pulverized rotten-stone, 


206 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

laid on a wet woollen rag 1 , or felt, and then rubbed on the 
painted body until you have polished off all the brush 
marks. The most that there is about this operation is 
—carefulness not to rub too much in one place so as to 
rub through the color, and, at the same time, polish over 
every part evenly, so that it is as smooth as a mirror. 
If, by accident, you have rubbed through the paint, it 
sometimes can be remedied by putting on the injured 
spot a little more of the color with a soft brush ; but 
this kind of patching cannot be carried on to any very 
great extent on a first class job. While you are rubbing 
down the paint, use a sponge and water frequently, and 
wash it off so that you know just how much it has been 
rubbed. 

After the body has been thoroughly polished, wash it 
well with water, until you have removed every particle 
of the rotten-stone. All this requires the utmost care, 
and the workman should not have any other business on 
his mind to divert his attention from his work. Having 
got a sufficient coat of paint on the body, the next thing 
will be to prepare it for ornamenting. Painters differ 
about this. Some stripe on the paint, and others put on 
a coat of varnish and stripe on that. I prefer the last 
way, because the striping runs on to the varnish easier 
than on the paint; therefore, I should put on a coat of 
good varnish—and by good, I mean the very best Amer¬ 
ican to be had—for that is the cheapest for the work¬ 
man, in order to produce the same effect in looks. 

For varnishing, it is absolutely necessary to have the 
room free from dust; and it must be kept at a temper¬ 
ature about as warm as a workman can comfortably bear 
to work in. If you are not sure that your varnish is free 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


207 


from specks, it will be better to filter it through cotton 
factory cloth ; sometimes there are* small particles of 
gum in the varnish, which are transparent, so that you 
cannot see them until after the varnish has been laid on 
to the work, when they show themselves in small specks 
which we sometimes take for specks worked out of the 
brush. Lay on the varnishes with a good fine bristle 
brush, even and with straight brush marks, drawn very 
lightly for the finish. Sometimes, on a very smooth fin¬ 
ished job, the varnish will dry leaving little pit-marks, 
where the varnish seems to crawl oft' from the paint, 
making it look as though it had had the small-pox. I 
believe this is a defect in the varnish, and I never saw it 
do so but once; yet a painter, who .had used a large 
quantity from the same lot of varnish, told me that it 
was a frequent occurrence with him. It is a frequent 
occurrence for striping and varnish to crawl off* from 
where it has been laid, and I think the preventive of 
the latter difficulty will answer for the former. 

To prevent paint or varnish from crawling, take a 
flannel rag and rub it over the work previous to varnish¬ 
ing, striping, or painting ; this will prevent any difficulty 
about its crawling. Of a great many ways for prevent¬ 
ing paint or varnish from crawling, which I have seen 
practiced, this, I think, is far the best and cheapest. In 
varnishing, always be careful not to put the varnish on 
the corners of the work and leave it to run down. 
Always examine these places carefully before leaving 
the work ; and, as a general thing, you must commence 
on the inside panels of a body, and work to the outer 
edge the last thing. Another general rule is, to com¬ 
mence the work that is the highest up first, ana finish 


208 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

that which is the lowest last; this prevents dirt from 
falling 1 on and sticking to the paint while yon are work¬ 
ing on it. When the work is varnished, close the room 
tight and leave it to dry, without opening the doors or 
doing any thing to get dust on the work, until it gets so 
that it will not stick. After taking all these precautions 
to prevent specks, if you should still be unfortunate and 
get some on, they must be removed with line sandpaper 
before the striping or ornamenting is commenced. 

In ornamenting and striping a carriage, it requires 
considerable taste and judgment. If the painter takes 
hold of his work as an artist does the canvas, and tries 
to see how much of his skill he can display on the sur. 
face he has to work, he will be very likely not to please 
himself, or any one else. He should be contented, not 
particularly to show off his own skill, but to preserve 
and show in the most graceful manner the workmanship 
of the builder. If the builder has not got gracefulness 
in Ins work, then the painter has still to try, by striping, 
to give it that appearance. It is very often the case 
that we see good made to look like very ordinary work> 
merely from a bad taste in the striping, so that it does 
not preserve the gracefulness which the builder intended 
it to have, and no one seems to know exactly where the 
fault is, for he cannot point out any particular defect in 
the painting. On the other hand, I have seen very ill¬ 
shaped work, particularly in that kind called market 
wagons, or wagons of that grade, put into such shane by 
the painter, that no objection was made to their ill-pro- 
poitions. There is a certain curved line which enters 
into the form of things having beauty and gracefulness, 
and if that line is wanting, there are but few who can 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


209 


point out the particular defect, but every one knows 
there is something wrong. 

In large panels of carriages, and particularly on the 
backs of sleighs, it is frequently necessary to put in a 
centre ornament, which relieves the large and clumsy 
look which it otherwise would have. This often gives 
painters a great deal of trouble, because they do noi 
know how to get up an ornament; and yet the thing is 
very simple when understood, requiring no uncommon 
skill. 

I will now give the process of putting the ornament 
on the panel of a carriage, as it will be necessary to do 
so before the body is striped, and I shall not revert to 
the subject again, although I expect the painter, without 
any very great stretch of ingenuity, will make the same 
process answer to paint landscapes on the inside of 
omnibuses, put borders on sleighs, or, in fact, do any 
kind of ornamenting. 

After selecting an ornament, take a piece of thin 
transparent wrapping paper and oil it over with linseed 
oil until it has become saturated, then rub off all super¬ 
fluous oil, and afterward lay the paper over any one of 
the ornaments which you may select, and with a lead 
pencil trace neatly all of the ornament, not leaving out 
any of the shades, just as it is in the engraving; then 
turn the paper over on to a piece of white paper, and on 
the other side trace the same engraving, which will 
appear very distinct on the other side of the oiled paper. 
The panel which you wish to put the ornament on must 
be dusted over lightly with whiting, if you intend to put. 
any gilt in it, to prevent it from sticking to other parts 

of the work where it is not wanted; then have the panel 
11 


210 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

put into a horizontal position, and lay the side of the 
ornament which you draw last on to the place where 
you want it painted, and fasten it there by laying some 
small weight on the side of the paper from where you 
wish to work ; then with your pencil trace over the lines 
again on all the design except where you intend to put 
the gold leaf. This part needs only to be traced on the 
outside of the design. The result of this operation will 
be that tracing the design over on the paint will crowd 
the pencil mark down on to the paint, and will stick as 
plainly as though it had been drawn there with the pen¬ 
cil. The side of the paper can be raised to see if you are 
working all the drawing on the panel; if you do not 
remove the weight the paper will fall back to its original 
place. 

After the design is drawn on the panel, take some 
quick-drying varnish, and with a common sable artist’s 
pencil, lay some varnish on the spot where the gilt is to 
be put, and after the varnish has got hard, and yet a 
little tack to it—which will be in an hour or two—then 
lay on the gilt, press it down on to the paint so as to have 
it adhere. Leave it for three or four hours, if you can 
conveniently; afterward rub it down with some soft 
buckskin, or a silk handkerchief, and then lay the design 
on to the gilt, which you can very plainly see to do, and 
with the pencil draw the shades the same as before on 
the gilt. This will give you the design of what you want 
to put on for an ornament so that you can see it very 
distinctly on any color, and all the painter will have to do 
will be to color and shade it up in a proper manner. For 
this ornamenting you want artists’ sable hair pencils, 
from the smallest size up to four or five sizes above. 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


211 


The shade, which seems the most appropriate for gilt, 
is a transparent brownish color, which is got by mixing 
burnt terra de sienna with black asphaltum, varnish, and 
enough of oil to keep it from drying too quickly. 

Commence shading the gilt by putting on the deep 
shades as they are in the engraving. With the same 
paint lighten it by spreading the paint thinner on the 
gilt, as the parts which are to appear the most promi¬ 
nent must not be touched with the paint. The points 
of scrolls which turn over so as to show the other side, 
can be tipped with orange-colored paint, lightened up 
with white, or frequently with some other color which 
fancy dictates. The painted part of the ornament must 
be painted for the groundwork with the color directed, 
or as your own judgment may dictate. Shade with the 
same shades you have used on the gilt, or perhaps make 
a little more opaque by adding vandyke-brown, lightened 
up with white if the case requires. 

A very tasty ornament can be made by putting the 
groundwork of any of these ornaments wdiolly of gilt, 
and shading according to the above directions. Those 
who expect to excel in ornamenting should have some 
knowledge of perspective, which can be had by consult 
ing the Oxford drawing-book, or perhaps almost any 
other work on that subject; yet, to those who do not 
aspire any higher than to use ornaments that have 
already been engraved, the above process will be suffi¬ 
cient. 

To arrange the colors in striping, there are a few rules 
that should always be observed : The darkest color should 
be on the outside. If a carriage body is to be of two 
colors, the outside mouldings should be a darker shade 


212 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

than the panels. It is not considered in accordance with 
good taste to put much striping on a good body ; as a 
general thing, one fine line is sufficient for a panel, but, 
if it is necessary to put on any more, the fine line must 
be nearest to the centre of the panel, or on the inside of 
the wider stripes. 

There cannot be any precise rule laid down about 
mixing the paint and oil for striping, and yet it is one 
of the most important things to have the stripes run on 
the work easy. If there is too much dryer in the strip¬ 
ing it curdles and will not flow over the place where it 
has been laid, and when it is dry the body paint can be 
seen through the striping. I practice using boiled oil 
for wide line striping, with one eighth turpentine, and 
for fine lines raw oil without any turpentine, and just as 
little dryer as will suffice to make the striping dry in 
time. For both kinds be careful about working the 
paint too thick. Take time to get the striping so that 
it works easy, and you will save time before the job is 
done. Where there is but one line on a panel, it is bet¬ 
ter not to mark it with the dividers, but to trust to your 
eye to get it correct; but new beginners may have to 
mark the line until they get full command of the hand. 
Where there are two or more, it will always be necessary 
to run the dividers on one side of all the lines so as to 
keep them the same distances. 

For a gilt stripe, which is necessary for coaches, sleighs, 
etc., it is better in my opinion to use varnish to lay the 
gilt with ; and if the varnish dries too quickly, a little raw 
oil will correct that and make it more tacky. The diffi¬ 
culty in fat-oil for laying leaf is, that it often spreads 
over the edges of the stripe, and also, it has too much 


213 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 

body, making a ridge where the stripe is. It seldom 
looks well to see a stripe on a panel intersect another 
stripe at right angles in the corners, especially wdiere 
there is blit one line around the panels. Some shift is 
nearly always made to make the corners round or scal¬ 
loping. 

The carriage part can be striped more than the body; 
and small tasty scrolls, put into proper places, have very 
much the effect in filling up that an ornament has in the 
centre of a large panel; yet this part is often overdone 
witli stripes. Great care should be taken to make the 
stripes true, and to preserve, as has before been said, the 
beauty of form in the carriage. Preserve the same style 
and colors as nearly as can be, w r ith the body and car¬ 
riage part. 

I use what are called “ camel’s hair” pencils, and, per¬ 
haps from habit,.cannot use any other kind for striping. 
Long sable hair pencils are more elastic and stiff, the 
hairs are straighter, and will keep so a longer time, and 
the pencil will last enough longer to nearly pay the odds 
in the price; and if the painter can work with them best, 
certainly there can be no objection to using them. I 
find as much difficulty in changing from the “camel’s 
hair” to the sable hair brush, as in changing from the 
quill to the metallic pen. A pencil brush should be from 
one and a half to two inches long, and when not in use 
should he cleaned out with turpentine, dipped into lamp 
oil, and laid carefully away on a window-glass, in such a 
manner that the hair will keep perfectly straight; and 
when you want to use them, wash them out in turpen¬ 
tine and twirl them between your hands until they have 
thrown out all the lamp-oil and turpentine, and they will 


214 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

be ready for use. We cannot find brushes in the stores 
small enough to make the fine lines. This can be reme¬ 
died by cutting away some of the hair, or you can make 
small brushes from a large one, by taking a piece of rat¬ 
tan and making it round, about the size of a pencil han¬ 
dle, and splitting the end into quarters; then turn these 
split parts back and cut off the corners 10 that when 
they are turned back there will be a hollow; where the 
corners are cut out, put what hair you want into this 
hollow space from a larger pencil brush, and fasten it by 
winding a thread around the stick. Wet the string with 
glue, and you have a very good pencil. 

After a carriage has been striped, it should have time 
to become sufficiently dry before varnishing, or there 
will be the same difficulty with its cracking, when put 
on over the striping, as is found in putting varnish on 
the body paint before it is sufficiently dry. This diffi¬ 
culty is often erroneously attributed to the inferior 
quality of the varnish, when in fact it is nothing more 
than the injudicious application of varnish before the 
paint has become sufficiently dry. In the application 
of varnish, a practice has become very common, and is 
also recommended by varnish dealers, of using different 
kinds over the same body of paint. For instance, they 
have what they call rubbing varnish, to be applied for 
the first coats, which will dry quick and hard, making 
a coat that can be polished down smooth with rotten- 
stone, after which being done, they recommend putting 
a coat of wearing varnish that dries slow and flows over 
smoothly, giving a beautiful appearance to the job. 
Painters have worse practices among them occasionally 
than this; but, I must say, this is bad enough, as may 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


215 


be plainly seen by investigating the subject for a mo¬ 
ment. Take two kinds of varnishing, one with the 
foundation, or first coats, of this quick-drying varnish; 
the other, the foundation and finishing the same, of the 
slow-drying, wearing varnish, and when they have got 
thoroughly dry, test them by the force of resistance that 
they show' to accidents to which they are liable, such as 
scratching or jamming. First, take the point of a pin 
and scratch it across the surface of the work that is fin¬ 
ished with two different kinds of varnish—rubbing and 
wearing—and it will be seen that the point of the pin 
will make a ragged kind of a mark, four or five times the 
width of the pin point; then take a hammer and strike 
the same varnish, and it will be seen that the place hit 
will have a yellowish-white appearance, w'hich is occa¬ 
sioned by the under or rubbing part of the varnish 
crumbling or breaking up. 

Again, try the same process on the job that is done 
wholly with the wearing varnish, and it will be seen that 
the point of the pin will make a mark only the width of 
the point of the pin, leaving the edges of the mark 
straight and regular. The stroke of the hammer will be 
very much in effect like striking on a metallic surface; 
it may make a dent, but not crumble or give the var¬ 
nish another color, unless it be a very violent blow. 
Scratching and bruising are two of the most common 
accidents varnish is liable to. If we take two carriages 
done in two different ways, by a skilful workman, we 
may. on the first appearance, pronounce in favor of the 
one that is polished smooth with the rubbing varnish; 
but put them in use together, and it will be observed 
that the one that at first so readily met with our appro- 


216 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISILER. 

bation, will meet with the first accident to its fine finisn; 
and it will continue in the same way, always showing a 
mark for every bruise or scratch that it receives. On 
the other hand, the other one will appear as if it had 
been used in the most careful way, so that it had avoided 
all accidents, and in fact will preserve its finish much 
the longest. 

The usual practice among American painters is to use 
American varnish for all the rubbing coats, and finish 
with a flowing coat of medium English, without polish¬ 
ing. The objection to using English in all cases is that 
it dries so slowly that it would take at least six months to 
paint and varnish a carriage with it, a process for which 
no customer would wait. 

In order to varnish a carriage well, it is necessary that 
you be well acquainted with the peculiarities of the var¬ 
nish, if it has any ; and remember that it does not always 
insure a good job by putting on a great many coats, but 
that it is more likely the desired end will be attained by 
carefulness and good judgment. If it is cold weather, 
see that your varnish is made of about the same tem¬ 
perature as the room that you varnish in, which should 
be as warm as you can comfortably work in. The same 
may be observed with regard to the job that you are tc 
apply it to, as near as can be had. 

Before you commence to lay varnish on work, see that 
your person is free from dust, lint, or any substance that 
will fly from you to the varnish; that the room is per¬ 
fectly free from dust, or any current of air that may 
bring dust on to your work ; and that your brush—which 
should be of good, fine elastic bristles—is carefully freed 
from all specks that will work out into the varnish wher 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 


217 


laid on. Sprinkle the floor of the varnish-room with 
water, which prevents the dust rising from the floor ; 
dust off* the work well with the duster, and have all 
specks removed from the work. 

If you have a body to varnish, commence at the high¬ 
est part first, and work downward. Use the brush, with 
a good supply of varnish in it, quickly, and draw the finish¬ 
ing stroke as straight as possible, very slightly pressing 
on to the work. When the work is thoroughly spread 
over, and evenly laid on, the least brushing that it gets 
after this the better. But this last direction must not 
be construed into carelessness about your work. The 
‘ sleight” is to lay the varnish evenly over the work in 
the shortest possible time that it can, and be well done. 
When varnishing over panels, they should be done first, 
and the raised parts afterward. Care should be taken 
about leaving varnish on the corners, or any other place 
where it will run down. 

To varnish the carriage-part, the same rules should be 
observed; that is, to keep it free from dirt or the minute 
specks that are more or less constantly flying in the air. 
Sometimes these minute particles are in the varnish, and 
cannot be seen until the varnish is laid on to a smooth 
surface of paint, and then they show themselves plainly. 
To avoid them, the varnish should be filtered through a 
cloth. Two coats of the best wearing varnish laid over a 
polished surface of paint, are enough to make a good job, 
providing that it has been properly spread, and no acci- 
bent happened to it while drying. Varnish, when laid on 
with a brush, will show more or less the brush marks, as 
the bristles leave it in ridges. With only two coats of 
good flowing varnish, these ridges are scarcely percepti 


218 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

bio, but if you add more, it will make the ridges more 
plain, and then follows the necessity of polishing down 
the surface, and then putting on a single coat of finishing 
varnish. In the very best finished work this polishing 
the varnish is pursued, but, as we have said, it does not 
strike us as being a very good way to finish work. To 
polish varnish, there is an absolute necessity of its not 
only being dry, but being so dry and hard that it be¬ 
comes brittle ; but the more brittle it is, tbe easier it 
will polish. Now, good wearing varnish flows over the 
paint better, and is much longer in drying than the 
rubbing varnish; in fact, it never can be made to rub 
down as easily as rubbing varnish, and for that reason 
is very seldom used for that purpose. 

In using rubbing varnish for the first coat, it will bo 
necessary to let it dry hard before the next is put on, and 
in this way get three or four coats on the body, and well 
dried, before you undertake rubbing it down. After¬ 
ward, take some ground rotten-stone, mixed in water so 
that it will be as thick as cream, then take a woollen rag, 
made up into a shape suitable to rub the work with, and 
dip it into the rotten-stone, rubbing the varnish until all 
the brush marks are obliterated, and it then assumes a 
smooth, polished surface. Have a sponge and water 
handy, so that you can wash off the surface from time to 
time, to see if the object is accomplished; and when you 
have rubbed away every trace of a ridge that has been 
made by the brush on the surface of the varnish, the 
work of rubbing is over, and you must now wash ‘ 
work entirely clean, and then apply a coat of wearing 
varnish, as before directed. 

The most common difficulty that arises about rubbing 


COACH-PAINTING AND VARNISHING. 219 

paint or varnish is, that we do not give it a sufficient 
time to dry hard before we commence rubbing down. 
Again, paint or varnish that rubs down well will not 
wear on account of the necessity there is of adding more 
turpentine, which entirely evaporates from the paint, 
leaving less glutinous oil for holding the paint on to the 
wood. The fact of making paint or varnish easier to 
work by destroying its wearing quality, is a great temp¬ 
tation to the workman to get praise as a fancy workman 
at the expense of the wearing quality of his work. This 
last difficulty is avoided on the carriage-part by following 
the directions for laying on the paint as we have given 
them, and by so doing it obviates the difficulty of making 
paint brittle in order to have it rub down easy; also 
saves time, and makes a handsomer job. 


220 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


POLISHES. 

The compositions used for polishing are different, ac* 
cording to the nature of the varnish for which they arc 
employed. Some of the most useful I shall insert here. 


Varnish Polish. 

Take two ounces of tripoli, reduced to fine powder; 
put it into an earthen pot or basin, with water to cover 
it; then take a piece of fine flannel, four times doubled, 
lay it over a piece of cork or rubber, and proceed to 
polish your varnish, always wetting it with the tripoli 
and water. You will know when the process is com¬ 
pleted, by wiping a part of the work with a sponge and 
observing whether there is a fair and even gloss. Take 
a bit of mutton-suet and fine flour, and clean off the 
work. 

Or, the powdered tripoli may be mixed up with a 
little pure oil, and used upon a ball of serge, or of 
chamois leather, which is better. The polishing may 
afterwards be completed with a bit of serge or cloth, 
without tripoli. 

Putty powder, and even common whiting and water, 
are sometimes used for polishing; but they produce a 
very inferior effect to tripoli, except in the case of ivory, 


POLISHES. 


221 


for which putty and water, used upon a rubber made of 
a hat, forms the best and quickest polish. 

Putty and water may likewise be used, in the same 
manner as just mentioned for ivory, in finishing off the 
polish of pearl-work, after it has first been polished very 
smooth with pumice-stone, finely powdered, and well 
washed to free it from impurities and dirt. 

Polish for Dark-coloured Woods. 

Take one ounce of seed-lac, two drams of gum-guai- 
acum, two drams of dragon’s blood, and two drams 
of gum mastic : put them into a vessel containing a pint 
of spirit of wine : stop the vessel close, and expose the 
mixture to a moderate heat till you find all the gums 
dissolved : strain it off into a bottle for use, with a quar¬ 
ter of a gill of linseed oil, to be shaken up well with it. 

The dragon’s blood, which is apt to give a red tinge, 
renders this polish improper for light-coloured woods. 

Polish for Tunbridge-ware Goods , &c. 

Take half an ounce of gum sandrac and two ounces 
of gum benjamin; put them into a glass bottle, with a 
pint of spirits of wine. Cork the bottle, and place it in 
a sand-bath, or in hot water, till you find the gums dis¬ 
solved, shaking it in the interim from time to time. 
VThen it is all dissolved, strain it through a muslin 
sieve, and bottle it for use. 


222 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Carver’s Polish. 

] u a pint of spirits of wine, dissolve two ounces of 
seod-lac and two ounces of white resin. 

The principal use of this polish is for the carved parts 
of cabinet-work, such as standards, pillars, claws, <tec. 
11 should be laid on warm; and if the work can also be 
warmed at the time, it will be still better; but all 
moisture and dampness should be carefully avoided. 

French Polish. 

Take one ounce of shell-lac, a quarter of an ounce of 
gum Arabic, and a quarter of an ounce of gum copal. 
Bruise them well, and sift them through a piece of mus¬ 
lin : then put them, along with a pint of spirits of wine, 
into a closely-corked vessel: place it in a very warm 
situation, and shake it frequently every day till the 
gums are dissolved : then strain it through a piece of 
muslin, and keep it tight corked for use. 

Water-proof Polish. 

Put two ounces of gum benjamin, a quarter of an 
ounce of gum sandrac, and a quarter of an ounce of gum 
anima, into a pint of spirits of wine, in a closely stopped 
bottle. Place the bottle either in a sand-bath or in hot 
water, till the gums are dissolved; then strain off the 
mixture, shake it up with a quarter of a gill of the best 
clear poppy oil, and put it by for use. 


POLISHES. 


223 


Finishing Polish. 

Put two drams of shellac and two drams of gum 
benzoin into half a pint of the very best rectified 
spirits of wine, in a bottle closely corked. Keep the 
bottle in a warm place, and shake it frequently till the 
gums are dissolved ; when cold, shake up with it two 
tea-spoonfuls of the best clear poppy oil, and it will be 
fit for use. 

This polish may be applied with great advantage 
after any of those mentioned in the foregoing recipes 
have been used. It removes the defects existing in 
them, increases their lustre and durability, and gives 
the surface a most brilliant appearance. 

Polish for Wainscot. 

Take as much beesw^ax as will be sufficient for the 
work in hand, put it in an earthenware pan, cover it 
with 90 per cent, alcohol, and allow it to dissolve 
without the aid of heat. Rub the mixture, which 
should be of the consistency of butter, into the grain of 
the wood, and clean it off with clean linen rags. A 
good gloss is produced on the wood. The polish may 
be colored, if desired. 

White Polish for Light Woods. 

Dissolve bleached shellac 3 ozs., white gum benzoin 
1 oz., gum sandarac J oz., in alcohol or wood naphtha 
1 pint. 

French Polish for Carved Wood in Furniture. 

Reduce 30 parts of shellac, 7 of gum arabic and 15 of 
copal to a fine powder by pounding in a mortar, and 
sift the powder through a piece of muslin or a fine- 
mesh hair sieve. Put the sifted powder in a capacious 


224 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

flask or bottle and pour 700 parts of spirits of wine over 
it; cork up the bottle and stand it in a moderately 
warm place until the resins are thoroughly dissolved 
in the spirit. Several days will be required to accom¬ 
plish this; then strain the fluid through a piece of 
muslin into the wide neck of a flask or bottle—a pickle 
bottle or jar answers very well—press the muslin an 
inch or two down the neck, and tie the overlapping 
edges round the neck with a piece of string. By pour¬ 
ing the polish a little at a time into the hollow of the 
muslin, it will be strained as it passes through. 

Apply the polish with a soft hair brush to the 
carved parts; a beautiful gloss and richness of color 
are at once given to the carvings. 

To prepare a finish to use after the application of the 
above polish: Dissolve shellac 3 parts and gum ben¬ 
zoin 8, in a bottle with rectified spirits of wine 350. 
Cork up the bottle, and let the mixture digest in a 
warm place, shaking frequently. When the mixture 
is fluid and cold, put in a small quantity of best 
poppy-seed oil, which should be as clear as water; mix 
all intimatelv together, and keep it for use. 

Polish for Wood. 

Dissolve shellac 3 parts, solution of collodion cotton 
100 parts and camphor 50 parts, in a sufficient quantity 
of ethyl alcohol. 

For a finish , mix benzole and alcohol. 

Polish for Carved Cabinet War 

Dissolve seed-lac 2 ozs., and white resin 2 ozs., in 1 
pint of 90 per cent, alcohol. 

Warm the article to be polished, if practicable, so as 
to dry it and drive out all dampness, and then lay the 


POLISHES. 


225 


polish on the warm wood, the polish itself being 
warmed. For standards or pillars of cabinet work, 
the polish should be laid on with a brush, while for 
carved parts it should be used as follows: Varnish the 
parts with ordinary wood varnish, and having dressed 
them off where necessary with emery paper, apply 
the polish. 

Renovating Polish for Pine Carved Work. 

Mix 8 ozs. linseed oil, 8 ozs. old ale, the white of 1 
egg, 1 oz. hydrochloric acid and 1 oz. spirit of wine. 
Let the whole digest until thoroughly incorporated. 

Shake well before using, and apply a little to the 
face of a soft linen pad, and lightly rub the pad for a 
minute or two over the article to be restored, which is 
afterwards to be polished off with an old silk hand¬ 
kerchief. This polish will keep any length of time, if 
the bottle be well corked. 

Mahogany Polish. 

Best shellac 8f ozs., 96 per cent, alcohol 33J ozs. 
Put the alcohol and shellac into a bottle or jar, cover 
its mouth with muslin or paper pierced with holes, or 
a cork with a small hole through it, and effect solu¬ 
tion by standing the bottle in a vessel of boiling water. 

Ped Polish. 

Beeswax 4 ozs., alkanet 4 drachms, oil of turpentine 
16 ozs. Digest the alkanet in the turpentine until the 
fluid is sufficiently colored; then scrape the beeswax 
fine and thoroughly incorporate all the ingredients by 
digesting the mixture by the heat of a water bath. 


226 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Polish for Satinwood or Maple . 

Mix chrome yellow | oz. and French polish 1 gill. 
Use in the same manner as French polish (see below.) 
A little chrome yellow on the rubber is desirable. In 
French polishing always use a drop of linseed oil on 
the rubber. 

French Polish. 

Finest shellac ozs., dragon’s blood 1 oz., turmeric 
7f grains, 96 per cent, alcohol 50 ozs. Dissolve the 
shellac in one-lialf the prescribed quantity of alcohol 
and dissolve it in a sand bath. In a second bottle 
dissolve the dragon’s blood in the remainder of the 
alcohol. When all is dissolved, pour the two solu¬ 
tions together and mix by shaking; then add tin 
turmeric, shake well, and let the mixture stand undi& 
turbed for 24 hours. Then filter it. 


VARNISHING AND POLISHING. 


227 


PR ACTICE OF VARNISHING AND POLISHING. 

Before beginning to varnish, you must fill up any 
knots or blemishes with cement of the same colour as 
the ground. Have your varnish in a pan, such as I 
have before described, with a piece of wire running dia¬ 
metrically across the top, and slackened downwards, to 
stroke your brush against. Be careful that the brush 
be clean and free from loose hairs; dip it in the varnish, 
stroking it across the wire, and give the work a thin re¬ 
gular coat; soon after that, another; and so continue : 
always taking care not to pass the brush twice over the 
same place in any one coat, as that would render it 
unequal. 

The greatest difficulty of the operation consists in 
preventing the different strokes of the brush from being 
visible. To avoid this, let the brush be perfectly flat 
and as large as the nature of the work will permit. 
Draw it gently over the surface, in taking your strokes, 
and be careful not to load the brush with too much 
varnish at once. 

Turned articles are always best varnished while in the 
lathe, by means of heat; because the extension of the 
varnish is then more uniform and the operation facili¬ 
tates the polishing afterwards. 

When varnish is applied to painting in distemper, it 
is necessary to allow sufficient time to elapse between 


228 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER 

the application of the distemper and that of the varnish 
to let the wood become perfectly dry; if this be not 
done, the varnish will penetrate into the size, and at last 
bring off the coat of colouring beneath along with it, in 
thin pieces. 

For ordinary purposes, shell-lac varnish does not re¬ 
quire to be rubbed down and polished; but, when it is 
wished to produce a very even surface, these processes 
are necessary: for rubbing down, pumice-stone in fine 
powder is used. A piece of woollen rag is made wet, 
and a portion of the powder put upon it; this is rubbed 
carefully and equally over every p^rt of the varnished 
surface until it appear perfectly even. Great care is 
requisite to avoid rubbing through at some parts before 
others are rendered smooth, particularly if there are 
sharp edges or projecting mouldings. When this takes 
place, the whole process of varnishing must be repeated. 
A little practice will, however, enable any one to avoid 
this, provided the article varnished have an even surface 
and the number of coats have been sufficient to give the 
requisite thickness of resin. When the surface to be 
polished is flat, the cloth may, when used, be wrapped 
round a piece of cork or wood; and the same method 
may be adopted in rubbing down mouldings. 

When a surface is well prepared by the pumice-stone, 
it is very easily polished. This is effected by fine rotten- 
stone, used exactly in the same way as the pumice- 
stone, excepting that sweet oil is used instead of water. 
The oil may be removed from the surface by a fine rag 
and some dry rotten stone; and if a little be then rubbed 


VARNISHING AND POLISHING. 


229 


on by the palm of the hand, this will give a high polisfc 
to the surface. 

The gloss upon the shell-lac which has been polished 
is less brilliant than that of the unpolished varnish, but 
this gloss may be given by using a coat of seed lac 
varnish, which will abstract but little from the perfect 
surface given by polishing. 

In some cases, hard bodies may be allowably employed 
in polishing varnishes, but only when these varnishes 
are themselves hard, such as those resulting from the 
solution of amber and copal in drying oil, or even in oil 
of turpentine. 

When it is required to clean and polish old furniture, 
first wash it thoroughly with hot soft water to get the 
dirt off; then take a quart of stale beer or vinegar, put 
in a handful of common salt and a table-spoonful of 
spirits of salt, and boil it for a quarter of an hour; keep 
it in a bottle, and warm it when wanted for use. This 
mixture should be applied as long as necessary after the 
furniture has been washed with the hot water. 


French Polish. 

There is a mode of using shell-lac varnish which is 
sometimes denominated the German, but more commonly 
the French mode. It merits to be generally known, a? 
the process is easy and economical, and the effect beau¬ 
tiful. It has been much employed by cabinet and mu¬ 
sical instrument makers, but is not yet so extensively 
practised as it merits to be. 


230 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

The varnish is applied by means of what is called a 
rubber, made by rolling up a piece of thick woollen cloth, 
which has been torn off so as to have a soft, elastic edge- 
The varnish, put into a narrow-mouthed bottle, is ap¬ 
plied to the middle of the flat face of the rubber by lay¬ 
ing the rubber on the mouth of the bottle and quickly 
shaking the varnish at once, as the rubber will thus 
imbibe a sufficient quantity to varnish a considerable 
extent of surface. The rubber is then enclosed in a 
soft linen cloth doubled, the remainder of the cloth being 
gathered together at the back of the rubber to form a 
handle to hold it by; and the face of the linen cloth 
must be moistened with a little raw linseed-oil, which 
may either be coloured with alkanet root or not, applied 
with the finger to the middle of it. 

The work to be varnished should be placed opposite 
to the light, in order that the effect of the polishing may 
be better seen, and a surface of from ten to eight feel 
square may be varnished at once. 

The rubber must be quickly and lightly rubbed upon 
the surface of the article to be varnished, and the rub¬ 
bing continued until the varnish becomes nearly dry. 
The coil of woollen cloth must then be again wetted with 
the varnish, (no more oil need be applied to the surface 
of the linen cloth,) and the rubbing renewed till the var¬ 
nish becomes nearly dry as before; a third coat must be 
applied in the same manner, then a fourth with a little 
oil, which must be followed by two others without oil, as 
before. You proceed thus until the varnish has acquired 
some thickness, which will be after a few repetitions 


VARNISHING AND POLISHING. 


231 


of the series. Apply then a little alcohol to the inside 
of the linen cloth, and wet the coil with the varnish; 
after which, rub very quickly, lightly, and uniformly, 
over every part of the varnished surface, which will tend 
to make it even, and very much conduce to its polish. 
The linen cloth must now be wetted with a little alcohol 
and oil, without varnish; and the varnished surface 
being rubbed over, with the precautions last mentioned, 
until it is nearly dry, the effect of the operation will be 
seen. If it be found not complete, the process must be 
continued, with the introduction of alcohol in its turn 
as directed before, until the surface becomes smooth and 
of a beautiful lustre. 

The preceding process is that in general use; but Dr. 
Jones recommends, in the Franklin Journal , a rubber 
of a different sort, as well as a simpler mode of em¬ 
ploying it. He takes a piece of thick woollen cloth, six 
or eight inches in diameter, and upon one side of this 
pours a tea-spoonful of the varnish; he then collects the 
edges together, so as to enclose the varnish in the cloth 
and form a handle by which to hold it: this is finally- 
covered with a piece of oiled linen cloth, and the rubber 
is ready for use. More varnish is added as often as it is 
required; and when it becomes occasionally too thick to 
ooze through, a little alcohol is poured into the cloth. 

Some difficulties may be at first experienced in per¬ 
forming this process; but Dr. Jones states that a very 
little practice will enable any handy person to surmount 
them. The peculiar advantage said to attend it is, that a 
beautiful polish may be at once obtained by a continued 


232 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


application of the rubber in this way; while, according 
to the method previously described, successive coats of 
varnish, which require considerable time to dry, must be 
used, and a great deal of additional trouble incurred. 

In varnishing recesses or carved work, where parts 
of the surface are difficult to reach with the rubber, a 
spirit varnish, made with or without lac of the usual gum 
resins, and considerably thicker than that used for the 
rest of the work, may be applied to those parts with a 
brush or hair pencil. 


Waxing. 

In some instances, the application of wax merely is 
preferred to any varnish • particularly in the case of 
chairs, tables, &c., of walnut-tree wood, in daily use. 

Waxing resists percussion and friction, but it does not 
possess, in the same degree as varnish, the property of 
giving lustre to the bodies to which it is applied, and of 
heightening their tints. The lustre created by wax is 
but dull; but this inconvenience is balanced by the ease 
with which any accidents that may have effected its 
polish can be replaced by rubbing it with a piece of 
fine cork. 

In waxing, it is of gre-at importance to make the coat* 
ing as thin as possible, in order that the veins of the 
wood may be more distinctly seen. I consider the 
following preparation the best for performing this 
operation :— 

Put two ounces of white and yellow wax over a mode¬ 
rate fire, in a very clean vessel, and, when it is quite 


VARNISHING AND POLISHING. 


233 


melted, add four ounces of the best sjoirits of turpen¬ 
tine. Stir the whole until it is entirely cool, and you 
will have a pomade fit for waxing furniture, which 
must be rubbed over it according to the usual method. 
The oil soon penetrates the pores of the wood, brings 
out the color of it, causes the wax to adhere better, 
and produce a lustre equal to that of varnish, without- 
being subject to any of its inconveniences. 

Another polishing wax for furniture is prepared as 
follows: Melt 8 parts white wax, 2 parts resin, and J 
part Venice turpentine over a moderate fire, and pour 
the compound while warm into a suitable earthen¬ 
ware pot, and then stir in the oil of turpentine. In 
twenty-four hours the polish will have assumed the 
consistency of soft butter, and is then ready for use. 
Carefully cleanse the furniture with soap water, and 
when dry apply the polish in a thin layer with a 
woolen rag, rubbing first gently and then more vigor¬ 
ously. Let the furniture stand for a quarter to half an 
hour, and rub over more thoroughly with a woolen 
cloth. 


234 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 


ON LACQUERING. 

The general nature of the compositions employed for 
lacquering has already been explained under the head of 
Changing Varnishes. I shall in this place give some 
particular receipts for preparing the lacquers in most 
general use. 


Lacquer for Brass. 

Seed-lac, six ounces; amber or copal, ground on por¬ 
phyry or very clean marble, two ounces; dragon’s blood, 
forty grains; extract of red sandal-wood, thirty grains; 
oriental saffron, thirty-six grains; pounded glass, four 
ounces; very pure alcohol, forty ounces. 

Articles, or ornaments of brass, to which this varnish 
is to be applied, should be exposed to a gentle heat and 
then dipped into the varnish. Two or three coatings 
may be thus applied, if necessary. 

Articles varnished in this manner may be cleaned 
with water and a bit of dry rag. 

Lacquer for Philosophical Instruments. 

Gamboge, an ounce and a half; gum sandrac, four 
ounces; gum elemi, four ounces; best dragon’s blood, 


LACQUERING. 


235 


two ounces : terra merita,* an ounce and a half; oriental 
saffron, four grains; seed-lac, two ounces; pounded glass, 
six ounces; pure alcohol, forty ounces. 

The dragon’s blood, gum elemi, seed-lac, and gam¬ 
boge are all pounded and mixed with the glass. Over 
them is poured the tincture obtained by infusing the 
saffron and terra merita in the alcohol for twenty-four 
hours. This tincture, before being poured over the dra¬ 
gon’s blood, &c., should be strained through a piece of 
clean linen cloth, and strongly squeezed. 

If the dragon’s blood gives too high a colour, the 
quantity may be lessened according to circumstances. 
The same is the case with the other colouring matters. 

This lacquer has a very good effect when applied to 
many cast or moulded articles used in ornamenting fur¬ 
niture. 

Gold-coloured Lacquer for Brass Watch-cases , Watch- 

keys, &c. 

Seed-lac, six ounces; amber, two ounces; gamboge, 
two ounces; extract of red sandal-wood in water, twen¬ 
ty-four grains; dragon’s blood, sixty grains; oriental 


* Terra merita is the root of an Indian plant ; it is of a red 
colour, and much used in dyeing. In varnishing, it is only em¬ 
ployed in the form of a tincture, and is particularly well adapted 
for the mixture of those colouring parts which contribute the 
most towards giving metals the colour of gold. In choosing it 
be careful to observe that it is sound and compact. 




236 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

saffron, thirty-six grains; pounded glass, four ounces; 
pure alcohol, thirty-six ounces. 

The seed-lac, amber, gamboge, and dragon’s blood 
must be pounded very fine on porphyry or clean marble, 
and mixed with the pounded glass. Over this mixture 
is poured the tincture formed by infusing the saffron 
and the extract of sandal-wood into the alcohol, in the 
manner directed in the last receipt. The varnishing is 
completed as before. 

Metal articles that are to be covered with this varnish 
are heated, and, if they are of a kind to admit of it, are 
immersed in packets. The tint of the varnish may be 
varied in any degree required, by altering the propor¬ 
tions of the colouring quantities according to circum¬ 
stances. 


To make Lacquer of various Tints. 

For this purpose, make use of the receipt given under 
the head of Changing Varnishes. 

To clean old Brass Work for Lacquering . 

First boil a strong lye of wood-ashes, which you may 
strengthen with soap-lees ; put in your brass work, and 
the lacquer will immediately come off; then have ready 
a pickle of aqua-fortis and water, strong enough to take 
off the dirt; wash it immediately in clean water, dry it 
well, and lacquer it. 


LACQUERING. 


237 


Process of Lacquering Brass. 

Be sure that all oil or grease is removed before lay¬ 
ing on the lacquer. Hold the article with spring 
tongs or with a taper stick in some of the holes so as 
to avoid touching it with the fingers. Always handle 
the article with a piece of clean cloth. Heat the work- 
so hot that the brush will smoke when applied, but 
avoid overheating, as it burns the lacquer. It is well 
to fasten a small wire across the lacquer pot from side 
to side, to scrape oft* any superfluous lacquer from the 
brush, the ends of the hairs of which should be all ex¬ 
actly even. If not so, trim the ends with sharp 
scissors. Scrape the brush as dry as possible on the 
wire, making a flat smooth point at the same time. 
Use the very tip of the brush to lacquer with, and 
have a steady hand to avoid slopping. Two coats at 
least should be applied. To make the coat durable, it 
is as well to blaze off after each coat with a spirit 
lamp or Bunsen burner, being very careful not to over¬ 
heat or burn the lacquer. If the lacquer be too thick, 
it will look gummy on the work; if too thin, it will 
show prismatic colors. In the first case, dilute with 
alcohol; in the latter case, set the pot on the stove and 
evaporate some of the spirit. A good deal of cheap 
work is dipped. Use a bath of equal parts of sul¬ 
phuric and nitric acid, dip the work, hang it on the 
wire for a moment, then remove and rinse it thor¬ 
oughly in cold water, dip in hot water, remove, put in 
lacquer, shake vigorously on removing to throw off 
extra lacquer, and lay on a warm metal plate till dry; 
let it cool and the work is done. Avoid handling 
lacquered work until cold. 


238 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Lacquer for Sign Painters. 

Dissolve elemi 2 ozs., mastic 2\ ozs., sandarac 5 ozs., 
and shellac 5 ozs., in spirits of wine 50 ozs. In another 
vessel mix 2 ozs. of oil of turpentine and 2 ozs. of 
Venice turpentine, and add the mixture to the solu¬ 
tion of resins. 


Black Lacquer for Wood. 

Elemi 1 oz., seed-lac 1 oz., mastic 1 oz., sandarac 1 
oz., shellac 2 ozs., Venice turpentine 1 oz., alcohol 20 
ozs., bone-black 1 oz. 

Rub up the bone-black in the turpentine and add 
the mixture to the solution formed by dissolving the 
resins in the alcohol. 

Lacquer for Floors. 

I. Dissolve colophony 10 parts, ruby shellac 20, and 
Venice turpentine 5, in spirits of wine 100. 

II. Dissolve colophony 15 parts, ruby shellac 10, oil 
of turpentine 5, in spirits of wine 60. 

III. Dissolve 5| ozs. shellac in 17 gills alcohol. 

This lacquer is for use on floors which have been 

painted any color. The thin coat of lacquer will make 
the color more durable than would be the case with¬ 
out it. 


Fed Lacquer for Wood. 

Elemi 1 oz., mastic 1 oz., sandarac 4 ozs., shellac 2 
ozs., Venice turpentine 2 ozs., alcohol 25 ozs., dragon’s 
blood J oz. 

Dissolve the red coloring matter in a little alcohol, 
separately dissolve the other solids in the remainder 
of the alcohol, then add the turpentine and the tine- 


LACQUERING. 


239 


ture of dragon's blood. Mix by thorough shaking, 
and filter. 


Ebony Lacquer for Woodwork. 

Dissolve, on the one hand, 1 oz. of aniline hydro¬ 
chloride in 1 oz. of alcohol, and, on the other, 1 part, 
of sulphate of copper in 100 parts of water. 

Coat the wood with the copper sulphate solution, 
let it dry thoroughly, and then apply the aniline 
hydrochloride solution. In a short time the copper 
salt that has been absorbed by the wood will react on 
the aniline hydrochloride, producing a deep black 
color. This combination has been called nigrosine, 
and cannot be destroyed either by acids or alkalies. 
The wood may, therefore, be left without further coat¬ 
ing, but if it is desired to give it lustre, a coating of 
ordinary cabinet-maker’s varnish suffices for the 
purpose. 

Lacquer for Basket and Wicker Work. 

A lacquer which shall answer for this purpose must 
possess a certain degree of elasticity, and can be pre¬ 
pared without great difficulty as follows: Boil a good 
quality of linseed oil in a capacious vessel until a drop 
of it, when poured upon a cold stone slab, becomes so 
viscid that it tenaciously adheres to the finger when 
touched, and can be drawn out in long threads. Mix 
1 part of the linseed oil thus prepared with 20 parts of 
good fat copal varnish and reduce to the desired con¬ 
sistency with oil of turpentine. To color this lacquer, 
if required, it is best to use aniline colors dissolved in 
benzole and to mix the solution intimately with the 
lacquer. 


240 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

Lacquer for Wall Paper. 

Dissolve equal parts of borax and shellac in 10 times 
their weight of alcohol. Strain the solution and ap¬ 
ply two coats of it to the wall paper, in the usual 
manner with a brush, the first coat being allowed to 
dry thoroughly before applying the second. The 
lacquer may be applied to the paper either before or 
after it is put on the wall. 

For every light-colored paper use sandarac instead 
of shellac. Paper treated with this lacquer can be 
washed with water, and even with soap if necessary. 


BRONZING. 


241 


BRONZING. 

This art in nothing but a species of painting; but far 
from being of the most delicate kind. The principal 
ingredients made use of in it are the true gold powder, 
the German gold, the aurum mosaicum, (all before 
described,) and copper powder. This last may be pro¬ 
cured by dissolving filings or slips of copper with nitrous 
acid in a receiver. When the acid is saturated, the 
slips are to be removed; or, if filings be employed, the 
solution is to be poured off from what remains urnlis- 
solved. Small bars are then put in, which will preci¬ 
pitate the copper from the saturated acid, in a powder 
of the peculiar appearance and colour of copper; and 
the liquid being poured from the powder, this is to be 
washed clean off the crystals by repeated levigations. 

The choice of these powders is, of course, to be deter¬ 
mined by the degree of brilliancy you wish to obtain. 
The powder is mixed with strong gum water or isinglass, 
and laid on with a brush or pencil; or, a coating of gold- 
size, prepared with a due proportion of turpentine, is 
first applied; and when not so dry as to have still a 
certain clamminess, a piece of soft leather, wrapped 
round the finger, is dipped in the powder and rubbed 
over the work. When the work has, in either of these 
ways, been all covered with the bronze, it must be left 
16 


242 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

to dry, and any loose powder then cleared away by a 
hair penciL 

Bronzing in wood may be effected by a process some¬ 
what differing from the above. Prussian blue, patent 
yellow, raw amber, lamp-black, and pipe-clay are ground 
separately with water on a stone, and as much of them 
as will make a good colour put into a small vessel, three- 
fourths full of size, not quite so strong as what is called 
clean size. This mixture is found to succeed best on 
using about half as much more pipe-clay as of any of the 
other ingredients. The wood being previously cleaned 
and smoothed, and coated with a mixture of clean size 
and lamp-black, receives a new coating with the above 
compound twice successively, having allowed the first 
to dry. Afterwards the bronze-powder is to be laid on 
with a pencil, and the whole burnished or cleaned anew, 
observing to repair the parts which may be injured by 
this operation. Next, the work must be coated over 
with a thin lather of Castile soap; which will take off 
the glare of the burnishing, and afterwards be carefully 
rubbed with a woollen cloth. The superfluous powder 
may be rubbed off when dry. 

In bronzing iron, the subject should be heated to a 
greater degree than the hand can bear; and German 
gold, mixed with a small quantity of spirit-of-wine var¬ 
nish, spread over it with a pencil. Should the iron be 
already polished, you must heat it well and moisten it 
with a linen rag dipped in vinegar. 

There is a method of bronzing casts of plaster of Paris 
analogous to that which we have above given for bronz- 


BRONZING. 


243 


ing wood; but it is not in much repute. Such flgure 
may be beautifully varnished by means of the follow¬ 
ing composition, recommended by Dr. Johns, of Man¬ 
chester, England, in the Mechanics' Magazine, vol. iv. 
pp. 303, 352. Of white soap and white wax, take each 
half an ounce; of water, two pints; boil them together 
for a short time in a clean vessel. This varnish is to 
be applied when cold, by means of a soft brush. It 
does not sink in; it readily dries; and its effect may 
be heightened by lightly using a silk pocket hand¬ 
kerchief. 


Bronze Paint. 

1. Gold size 2 ozs., copal varnish 2 ozs., turpentine 4 
ozs., and a sufficient quantity of bronze powder. 

2. Liquid for bronzing paper, leather, glass, etc. 
Dissolve 10 parts diamond fuchsine and 5 parts methyl 
violet, by the aid of heat, in 95 per cent, alcohol. 
Then add 5 parts benzoic acid and boil 5 or 10 min¬ 
utes, till the green color has changed to a lustrous 
bronze. It is easily laid on with a brush, dries rap¬ 
idly, and is brilliant, durable and adherent. 

3. Bronze paint for plaster. Boil 3 lbs. pure lin¬ 
seed oil with 12 ozs. finely powdered litharge, strain 
through coarse cloth, and allow to stand till clear. 
Mix 15 ozs. of this soap-varnish with 12 ozs. metallic 
soap powder made as follows: To a solution of soda 
soap in linseed oil, cleared by straining, add a mixture 
of 4 parts sulphate of copper solution and 1 part sul¬ 
phate of iron solution, which precipitates a metallic 
soap of a peculiar bronze color. To the mixture are 
then added 5 ozs. fine white wax, melted on a water 
bath, and allowed to remain in a melted state to expel 
any moisture present. It is then applied with a brush 


244 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHED. 

to the surface of the plaster, previously heated to 200° 
F., being careful to lay it on smoothly and without 
tilling up any indentations of the plaster design. 
Place it for a few days in a cool place, and as soon as 
the smell of the soap varnish has gone off, rub the 
surface over with cotton-wool or a tine linen rag, and 
variegate with a few streaks of metal powder or shell 
gold. 

4. For iron or brass. Chrome green 2 lbs., ivory 
black 1 oz., chrome yellow 1 oz., good japan 1 gill. 
Grind all together and mix with linseed oil. 

5. Antique bronze. Sal ammoniac 2 ozs., cream of 
tartar 6 ozs., common salt 12 ozs. Dissolve in 1 quart 
of hot water, add 4 ozs. of nitrate of copper, mix, and 
apply several times with a brush to the article. 

Bronzing Inlaid Work. 

A method employed for decorating inlaid work is 
the use of a bronzing liquid, which consists of .a fluid 
bronze composition formed by combining metallic 
powder of gilding and bronze powder with collodion. 
This composition is capable of being applied as a 
bronze liquid to the surfaces of wood, iron, or any solid 
material, for the purpose of coating the same for 
decoration or preservation. 

To Bronze Steam Pipes used for Steam Heating. 

Use ordinary chrome yellow for painting the pipes. 
When this is nearly dry, rub on gold bronze powder 
with a piece of fur. Varnish with thin copal varnish 
or mastic varnish, when thoroughly dry. 

Size for Bronze Powder for Iron. 

To one pint of methylated finish add 4 ozs. of gum 


BRONZING. 


245 


shellac and £ oz. gum benzoin. Put the bottle in a 
warm place and shake it occasionally. When the 
gums are dissolved, let the bottle stand in a cool place 
two or three days for the solution to settle. Pour 
off the clear portion and reserve it for the finest work, 
using the sediment, which by the addition of more 
alcohol may be made workable, when strained, for 
first coat or coarser work. Add a sufficient quantity 
of the bronze to this, and apply to the clean, smooth, 
warm iron, using a soft brush. Repeat, after drying, 
if necessary. Thin with alcohol, if necessary, to avoid 
wrinkles and brush-marks. Varnish over all. 

Bronzing Wood. 

Cover the wood with a uniform coating of glue or of 
drying oil, and when nearly dry, dust over it the 
bronze powder contained in a small bag. The surface 
of the object is afterwards rubbed with a piece of 
moist rag. Or the bronze powder may be previously 
mixed with the drying oil, and applied with a brush. 


24G 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 


JAPANNING. 

All wood work intended to be japanned must be 
prepared with size, and some coarse material mixed with 
it to till up and harden the grain of the wood, (such as 
may best suit the colour intended to be laid on,) which 
must be rubbed smooth with glass paper when dry. In 
cases of accident, it is seldom necessary to re-size the 
damaged places, unless they are considerable. 

Be very careful, in japanning, to grind your colours 
smooth in spirit of turpentine; then add a small quan¬ 
tity of turpentine and spirit varnish; lay it carefully on 
with a camel-hair brush, and varnish it with brown or 
white spirit varnish, according to the colour. 

Colours required in Japanning. 

Flake white, red lead, vermilion, lake, Prussian blue, 
patent yellow, orpiment, ochres, verditers, Vandyke 
brown, umber, lamp-black, and siennas raw and burnt. 
With these you may match almost any colours in gene¬ 
ral use in japanning. For a black japan, it will be 
found sufficient to mix a little gold-size with lamp-black; 
this will bear a good gloss, without requiring to be var¬ 
nished afterwards. 


JAPANNING. 


247 


To Prepare a Fine Tortoise-shell Japan Ground by 

Means of Heat. 

Take one gallon of good linseed oil, and half a 
pound of umber; boil them together till the oil be¬ 
comes very brown and thick: then strain it through, 
a coarse cloth, and set it again to boil; in which state 
it must be continued till it acquire a consistence re¬ 
sembling that of pitch; it will then be fit for use. 

Having thus prepared the varnish, clean well the 
substance which is to be japanned. Then lay ver¬ 
milion tempered with shell-lac varnish or with drying 
oil very thinly diluted with oil of turpentine, on the 
places intended to imitate the more transparent parts 
of the tortoise-shell. When the vermilion is dry, 
brush the whole over with black varnish, tempered to 
a due consistence with the oil of turpentine. When 
set and firm, put the work into a stove, where it may 
undergo a very strong heat, which must be continued 
a considerable time; if even three weeks or a month, it 
will be the better. 

This tortoise-shell ground is not less valuable for its 
great hardness, and endurance of heat greater than 
that of boiling water, without suffering damage, than 
for the superior beauty and brilliancy of its appearance. 

Japan Finishing. 

The finishing part of japanning lies in laying on and 
polishing the outer coats of varnish, which is neces¬ 
sary in all-painted or simply ground colored japan 
work. When brightness and clearness are wanted, a 
white kind of varnish is necessary, for seed-lac var¬ 
nish, which is the hardest and most tenacious, im¬ 
parts a yellow tinge. A mixed varnish is best for this 


248 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

purpose, that is for combining hardness and purity. 
Take then 3 'ozs. of seed-lac, picked very carefully 
from all sticks and dirt, and wash it well with cold 
water, stirring it up and pouring off the water, and 
continuing the process until the water runs off per¬ 
fectly pure. Then dry the shellac, and after having it 
reduced to powder, put it with a pint of alcohol into a 
bottle, of which it must occupy only two-thirds of its 
space. This mixture must be shaken well together 
and the corked bottle kept in a warm place until the 
shellac is dissolved. When this is the case the clear 
portion is to be poured off and the remainder strained 
through a cloth, and after combining both, the clear 
and strained portions, keep them in a well-stoppered 
bottle. This seed-lac varnish is used in the usual 
manner and a fine polishing varnish is made by mix¬ 
ing it with pure white varnish. The pieces of work to 
be varnished for finishing should be placed near a 
stove or in a warm, dry room, and one coat should be 
perfectly dry before the other is applied. The varnish 
is applied by proper brushes, beginning at the middle, 
passing the stroke to one end, and with the other 
stroke from the middle to the other end. Great skill 
is required in laying on these coats of varnish. If pos¬ 
sible the brush should never cross or twice pass over in 
giving one coat. When one coat is dry, another must 
be laid over it, and so on successively for a number of 
coats, so that the coating will be sufficiently thick to 
stand fully all the polishing so as not to bare the sur¬ 
face of the colored work. When a sufficient number of 
coats are thus laid on, the work is fit to be polished, 
which, in common cases, is commenced with a rag 
dipped in finely powdered rotten-stone, and toward 
the end of the rubbing a little oil should be used along 


JAPANNING. 


249 


with the powder. When the work appears fine and 
glossy a little oil should be used alone to clean off the 
powder and give the work a still brighter hue. In 
very fine work French whiting should be used, which 
should be washed in water to remove any sand that 
might be in it. Pumice stone ground to a very fine 
powder is used for the first part of the polishing, and 
the finishing is done with whiting. It is always best 
to dry the varnish of all japan work by heat. For 
wood work heat must be sparingly used, but for metals 
the varnish should be dried in an oven, also for papier 
mache and leather. The metal will stand the great¬ 
est heat, and care must be taken not to darken by too 
high a temperature. When gold size is used in gild¬ 
ing for japan work, where it is desired not to have the 
gold shine or appear burnished, the gold size should 
be used with a little spirits of turpentine and a little 
oil; but when a considerable degree of lustre is wanted 
without burnishing and the preparation necessary for 
it, a little of the size along with oil alone should be 
used. 


Imitation of Japanning. 

The peculiar glossy surface of the so-called japan 
trays can only be given by practice, but a close imita¬ 
tion may be effected as follows: Mix ivory black with 
melted size, apply the mixture quite hot to the box or 
any other wooden article that it may be desired to 
treat in this manner. When dry, sandpaper the box 
and then give it another coat of black. When this 
second coat is dry, bring to smoothness with sand 
paper, at the same time taking care not to remove the 
stain, so that the light wood underneath is exposed. 
Now procure 1 lb. of black japan and 1 gill of turpen- 


250 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

tine. Mix enough of the black japan for present use 
with turpentine, of which only sufficient should be 
taken to make the japan fluid enough to run from the 
brush. A fine-haired paint brush should be employed. 
If properly done one coat will be sufficient. The box 
will look nearly equal to the Japan goods. Dry the 
varnished box in a warm room free from dust. 


GILDING MATERIALS. 


251 


GILDING MATERIALS. 

True Gold Powder. 

Put some gold leaf ; witb a little honey or thick gum- 
water, into an earthen mortar, and pound the mixture 
till the gold is reduced to very small particles. Then 
wash out the honey or gum repeatedly with warm water, 
and the gold will be left behind in the state, of powder, 
which, when dried, is fit for use. 

Another, and perhaps better method of preparing gold 
powder, is to heat a prepared amalgam* of gold in a 
clean open crucible, continuing a very strong heat till 
all the mercury has evaporated, stirring the amalgam all 
the while with a glass rod. When the mercury has en¬ 
tirely left the gold, grind the remainder in a Wedge- 
wood’s mortar, with a little water; and, when dried, it 
will be fit for use. The subliming the mercury is, how¬ 
ever, a process injurious to the health. 

Colour-heightening Compositions. 

For Yellow Gold, dissolve in water six ounces of salt¬ 
petre, two ounces of copperas, one ounce of white vitriol, 


* An amalgam of any metal is formed by a mixture of quick¬ 
silver witb that metal. 



252 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

and one ounce of alum. If wanted redder, add a small 
portion of blue vitriol. 

For Green Gold, dissolve in water a mixture consist¬ 
ing of an ounce and a half of saltpetre, vitriol, and sal- 
ammoniac, an ounce and a quarter each, and one ounce 
of verdigris. 

For Red Gold, take an ounce and a half of red ochre 
in fine powder, the same quantity of calcined verdigris, 
half an ounce of calcined borax, and four ounces of 
melted yellow wax. The verdigris must be calcined, 
or else, by the heat applied in melting the wax, the 
vinegar becomes so concentrated as to corrode the sur¬ 
face, and make it appear speckled. 

Mosaic Gold. 

Mosaic Gold, or Aurum Mosaicum , is used for inferior 
articles. It is prepared in the following manner: A 
pound of tin is melted in a crucible, and half a pound 
of purified quicksilver added to it: when this mixture 
is cold, it is reduced to powder, and ground with half a 
pound of sal-ammoniac and seven ounces of flower of 
sulphur, till the whole is thoroughly mixed. They are 
then calcined in a matras; and the sublimation of the 
other ingredients leaves the tin converted into the Aurum 
Mosaicum , which is found at the bottom of the glass, like 
a mass of bright flaky gold powder. Should any black 
or discoloured particles appear, they must be removed. 
The sal-ammoniac used here must be very white and 
clear, and the mercury quite pure and unadulterated. 
When a shade of deeper red is required, it can easily be 


GILDING MATERIALS. 


253 


obtained by grinding a very small quantity of red lead 
along with the above materials. 

Dutch or German Gold. 

A gilding powder is sometimes made from Dutch 
Gold, which is sold in books at a very low price. This 
is treated in the same way as the real gold leaf in making 
the true gold powder. It is necessary, when this inferior 
powder is used, to cover the gilding with a coat of clear 
varnish, otherwise it soon loses its metallic appearance. 
The same remark applies, though in a less degree, to 
Mosaic gilding. 


Ethereal Solution of Gold. 

The following mode of effecting this solution (used 
chiefly for gilding steel) is recommend by Mr. H. Mill, 
in the “ Technical Repository,” as being superior to any 
previously made known. “ The instructions,” he says. 
“ given in most elementary works on chemistry for this 
purpose are either erroneous or not sufficiently explicit.” 
The process answers equally well for either gold or 
platina. 

Dissolve any quantity of gold or platina in nitro-muri- 
atic acid, (aqua regia,') until no further effervescence is 
occasioned by the application of heat. Evaporate the 
solution of gold or platina, thus formed, to dryness, in a 
gentle heat, (it will then be freed from all excess of acid, 
which is essential,) and re-dissolve the dry mass in as 
little water as possible : next take an instrument which 


254 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

is used by chemists for dropping liquids, known by the 
name of a separating funnel, having a pear-shaped body, 
tapering to a fine sharp point, and a neck capable of be¬ 
ing stopped with the finger or a cork, which may contain 
a liquid ounce or more; fill it with the liquid about one- 
quarter part, and the other three parts must be filled 
with the very best sulphuric ether. If this be rightly 
managed, the two liquids will not mix Then place the 
tube in a horizontal position, and gently turn it round 
with the finger and thumb. The ether will very soon 
be impregnated with the gold or platina, which may be 
known by its changing its colour : replace it in a perpen¬ 
dicular position, and let it rest for twenty-four hours; 
having first stopped up the upper orifice with a cork. 
The liquid will then be divided into two parts—the 
darkest colouring being underneath. To separate them 
take out the cork and let the dark liquid flow out: when 
it has disappeared, stop the tube immediately with the 
cork, and what remains in the tube is fit for use, and 
may be called gilding liquid. Let it be put into a bottle, 
and tightly corked. 

The muriate of gold or platina, formed by digesting 
these metals in nitro-muriatic acid, must be entirely free 
from all excess of acid; because it will otherwise act too 
forcibly on the steel, and cause the coating of gold to 
peel off. Pure gold must be employed : the ether must 
not be shaken with the muriate of gold, as is advised in 
chemical publications, for it will be sure, then, to contain 
acid; but if the two liquids be brought continually Into 
contact by the motion described, the affinity between 


GILDING MATERIALS. 


255 


ether and gold is so strong as to overcome the obstaclo 
of gravity, and it will hold the gold in solution. The 
ethereal solution may also be concentrated by gentle 
evaporation. 


Gold Oil-colour, or Size. 

The English method of preparing the colour in size, 
which serves as the ground on which the gold is laid, is, 
to grind together some red oxide of lead with the thick¬ 
est drying oil that can be procured—the older the better. 
To make it work freely, it is mixed, before being used, 
with a little oil of turpentine, till it is brought to a 
proper consistence. (See, also, Mordant Varnishes .) 

Gold Water Size. 

One pound of Armenian bole, two ounces of red lead, 
and a sufficient portion of black lead, are ground sepa¬ 
rately in water, and then mixed, and re-ground with 
nearly a spoonful of olive oil. The gold size is tempered 
by mixing it in parchment size which is clear and clean, 
and has been passed through a fine sieve to clear it of 
all foreign matters. The parchment size is made by 
boiling down pieces of white leather, or clippings of 
parchment, till they are reduced to a stiff jelly. 

Preparatory Size. 

Boil a handful of the leaves of wormwood and two or 
three heads of garlic in a quart of water, until the liquid 
is reduced to one-half; then strain it through a cloth, 


256 PAINTER, GIEDER, AND VARNISHER. 

and add half a handful of common salt, and nearly half 
a pint of vinegar. The design of this composition 
(usually employed in gilding looking-glass and picture 
frames) is to obviate the greasiness of the wood, and 
prepare it the better to receive the coats which are to be 
laid on, and to preserve it from the ravages of worms. 
When used, it is mixed with a sufficient portion of good 
glue, boiling hot. In applying it to the gilding of 
plaster or marble, the salt must be left out of its com¬ 
position ; as, in damp situations, this would produce a 
white saline efflorescence on the surface of the gold. 

White Coating. 

A quart of strong parchment size and half a pint of 
water are to be made quite hot, and to this are to be 
added (in small portions from time to time) two good 
handfuls of common wdiiting passed through a fine sieve: 
this mixture is to be left to infuse for half an hour, when 
it is to be stirred carefully so that the amalgamation 
nmy be perfect. 


Colouring Yellow. 

Half a pint of parchment size is taken, which must be 
clean, white, and clear, and of one-half the strength of 
that used for the white coating; this is warmed, and 
there is mixed with it two ounces of yellow ochre, very 
finely ground in water ) it is then left at rest, and the 
clear portion decanted, which gives a fine yellow colour, 
that serves, in water gilding, to cover those deep recesses 


GILDING MATERIALS. 


257 


into which the gold cannot be made to enter; it serves, 
also as a mordant for the gold size. 

Vermeil . 

This is a liquid which gives to the gold a warm re¬ 
flection. It is composed of two ounces of anotto, one 
ounce of gamboge, one ounce of vermilion, half an 
ounce of dragon’s blood, two ounces of salt of tartar, 
and eighteen grains of good saffron. The whole is to 
be boiled in a quart of water, over a slow fire, until it 
is reduced to one-fourth, when the liquor is passed 
through a strainer of silk or muslin. 

Composition for Moulding. 

The following is used by gilders: Mix 14 lbs. of glue, 
7 lbs. resin, £ lb. pitch, pints linseed oil, 5 pints of 
water, more or less according to the quantity required. 
Boil the whole together, with frequent stirring, until 
dissolved, add as much whiting as. will render it of 
hard consistency, then press it into the mould which 
has been previously oiled with sweet oil. No more 
should be mixed than can be used before it becomes 
sensibly hard, as it will require steaming before it can 
be used again. 

Another receipt is as follows: Make a very clear glue 
with 3 parts of glue and 1 part isinglass by dissolving 
the two kinds separately in a large quantity ot water, 
and mix them together after they have been strained 
through a piece of linen to separate any particles not 
dissolved. The quantity of water cannot be fixed, be¬ 
cause some kinds of glue require more than others. 
The proper strength may be found by suffering the 
glue to become perfectly cold; it must then barely 
form a jelly. The glue is to be gently heated, then 
17 


258 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

mixed with sawdust sifted through a fine sieve. The 
moulds are then to be oiled with nut oil and the glue 
pressed into the mould, covered with a weighted 
board, and then set to dry near a stove. When the 
casting is dry, it is trimmed. 

Gold Size. 

Heat | lb. linseed oil in a flask, and gradually add 
2 ozs. of powdered anime, stirring the oil continuously 
until the whole of the resin is dissolved. Continue 
boiliner until the mixture becomes a little thicker than 

o 

tar, when it is to be strained through a coarse cloth. 
Previous to use, it is to be ground up with sufficient 
vermilion to render it opaque; and turpentine must be 
added in order that it may work freely. 

Oil Size for Gilding. 

Grind calcined red ochre with good old drying oil, 
apd mix with it a little oil of turpentine when used. 
When the work is to be gilded, first give it a coat of 
parchment size; then apply the above size, Avhere re¬ 
quisite, either in patterns or letters, and let it remain 
till, by touching it with the finger, it feels just sticky; 
then apply the gold leaf and dab it on with a little 
piece of cotton. In about an hour wash off the super¬ 
fluous gold with sponge and water, and when dry 
varnish with copal varnish. 

Gilder's Wax. 

There are innumerable receipts for the preparation 
of gilder’s wax, nearly every gilder having his own re¬ 
ceipt, which he considers superior to all others. Only 
two formulae, which yield good results, will here be 
given, one (I) for reddish gilding, and one (II) for 
greenish gilding. 


GILDING MATERIALS. 


259 


I. Wax 12 parts by weight, pulverized verdigris 8, 
pulverized sulphate of zinc 4, copper scales 4, borax 1, 
pulverized bloodstone 6, copperas 2. 

II. Wax 12 parts by weight, pulverized verdigris 4, 
pulverized sulphate of zinc 8, copper scales 2, borax'1, 
pulverized bloodstone 6, copperas 2. 

Gilder’s wax is prepared as follows: Melt the v r ax in 
an iron kettle, add to the melted mass, with constant 
stirring, the other ingredients, pulverized and inti¬ 
mately mixed, in small portions, and stir until cold, 
so that the powder cannot settle on the bottom or form 
lumps. Finally mould the soft mass into sticks about 
£ inch in diameter. 

The operation for applying the gilder’s wax is as 
follows: Coat the heated gilded articles uniformly 
with the wax and burn off over a charcoal fire, fre¬ 
quently turning the articles. After the extinguish¬ 
ment of the flame plunge the articles into water, 
scratch-brush with wine vinegar, dry in sawdust, and 
polish. 

To give gilded metallic articles a beautiful rich ap¬ 
pearance the following process may also be used: Mix 
3 parts by weight of pulverized alum, 6 of saltpetre, 3 
of sulphate of zinc and 3 of common salt, with suffi¬ 
cient water to form a thinly fluid paste. Apply this 
paste as uniformly as possible to the articles by means 
of a brush, and after drying, heat the coating upon an 
iron plate until it turns black, then wash in water, 
scratch-brush with wine-vinegar, dry and polish. 

According to a French receipt , the same result is at¬ 
tained by mixing pulverized blue vitriol 3 parts by 
weight, verdigris 7, sal ammoniac 6, and saltpetre 6, 
with acetic acid 31; immersing the gilded articles in 
the mixture, or applying the latter w ith a brush, then 


2G0 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

heating the articles upon a hot iron plate until they 
turn black, and after cooling, pickling in concentrated 
sulphuric acid. 

Solution for Gilding Silver. 

Dissolve equal parts by weight of bichloride of mer¬ 
cury (corrosive sublimate) and chloride of ammonia 
(sal ammoniac) in nitric acid. Add some grain gold 
to the mixture and evaporate the liquid to half its 
bulk. Apply while hot to the surface of the silver 
article. 



PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


261 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 

Gilding Carved Wood with Water Size. 

MIX with your preparatory size a sufficient portion of 
good glue, boiling hot, and lay it upon the wood with a 
brush, the bristles of which are short. Then apply six, 
eight, or ten coats, equal in quantity, of the white coat¬ 
ing, and be particularly careful that the projecting parts 
are well covered, as the beauty of the burnish on the 
gold depends much on this. The first coat should be 
laid on quite hot, dabbing it with the brush in such a 
way that it may not be thicker in one place than 
another. The lower parts of the carving must be covered 
by dabbing it with a smaller brush. After putting on 
one coat of white, and before following it with a second, 
the work should be examined, any lumps in it reduced, 
and small hollows filled up by a cement consisting of 
whiting and glue kneaded together. Let the whole be 
now rubbed with fish-skin, which will remove every sort 
of roughness. The second, third, and remaining coats 
of white should have the size stronger than in the first 
coat, yet all of the same strength, otherwise a strong 
superior coat will cause a weaker one under it to scale 
ofi‘: the operation of dabbing with the brush must be 
repeated in every successive coat, in order to unite the 
whole, so that they may form a single compact body. 


262 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Each coat must also be perfectly dry before a new one 
is laid on. The whitened surface is now to be wetted 
with the brush which has been used for putting on the 
whiting, dipped in fresh cool water. Only a small portion 
should be wetted at once, which should then be rubbed 
down with pumice-stone, made flat for the parts which 
require to be of that form, and round or hollow, as may 
be necessary, for the mouldings. Little sticks are used 
for clearing out those members of the mouldings which 
may have been filled up by the whiting. The whitened 
parts are to be rubbed lightly, so as to render the sur¬ 
face smooth and even to the touch. At the same time, 
a brush which has become soft by using it with the 
whiting is employed to clear out all the dirt which has 
been found in the rubbing. The moisture is now to be 
dried up with a sponge, and any small grains which may 
remain removed by the finger—a delicate and very im- 
portant operation. The whole work is finally to be 
wiped with a piece of clean linen. 

The work should now be returned to the carver, to 
have the fine and delicate cutting of the sculptured parts 
restored. If the workman be skilful, he will be able to 
re-produce on the whiting every characteristic trait which 
may happen to have been obliterated. Where bas-re¬ 
liefs cast from moulds are laid on a flat or carved sur- 
face ? instead of the wood itself being carved, as is now 
very commonly the case, this repairing process is un¬ 
necessary. 

A moistened floth is now to be passed over the parts 
which are to be matted or burnished, and a soft moist- 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


263 


ened brush over those which have been repaired. The 
whole is then to be washed with a soft sponge, afld every 
speck and hair carefully removed. All the even parts 
should next be smoothed with rushes taking care not to 
rub off the whiting. The colouring yellow is now to be 
applied very hot, with a soft clean brush, so as to cover 
the whole work. This application must be lightly made, 
so as not to disturb the whiting. The yellow tint serves 
to cover those deep recesses into which the gold cannot 
be made to enter: it serves also as a mordant for the 
gold size. When this yellow covering becomes dry, the 
whole surface is to be again gently rubbed with rushes, 
to remove all specks or hairs which may be found on 
it, and to give a uniform surface without the slightest 
inequality. 

The gold size, which is the next thing to apply, you 
must temper by mixing it with some parchment size 
that has been passed through a fine sieve. It is to be 
laid on warm, with a small brush, the bristles of which 
are fine, long, and soft: there are brushes made for the 
express purpose. Three coats of the size will be suffi¬ 
cient. It is to be applied generally to the work, but 
you need not force it into the deeper parts. When the 
three coats of size are quite dry, the larger and smoother 
parts, which are intended to appear matted, are to be 
rubbed with a piece of new dry linen: this will cause 
the gold to extend itself evenly, and the water to flow 
over the sized surface without forming spots. To those 
parts which are not thus rubbed, but which are intended 
to be burnished, you must apply two additional coats of 


2G4 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

the same tempered gold size, to which a little water has 
been ad<fed to render it thinner. 

The work is now ready for Gilding .—Take a book of 
leaf gold, place the leaves upon a cushion, cut them to the 
required size, and lay them on the work by means of 
hair pencils of different sizes ; first wetting the part (but 
that only) on which the gold is to be applied with fresh 
and cool water. The deep recesses should be gilt before 
the more prominent parts. When the leaf is deposited 
in its place, water is applied, to make it spread easily, 
by means of a pencil behind it, but so as it may not 
flow, as this would occasion spots; it should also be 
breathed on gently, and any waste water removed with 
the point of a pencil. 

Those parts of the gilding which it is wished to pre¬ 
serve of a matted appearance should have a slight coat 
of parchment size, which will prevent the gold from 
rubbing off. The size should be warm, but not hot, 
and its strength half as great as that used with the co¬ 
louring yellow. 

The parts to which it is desired to give a more bril¬ 
liant appearance are burnished with a burnisher made 
of wolves’ or dogs’ teeth, or agate, mounted in iron or 
wooden handles, which must be kept, throughout the 
process, perfectly dry. The operation of burnishing is 
very simple. Take hold of the tool near to the tooth or 
6tone, and lean very hard with it on those parts which 
are to be burnished, causing it to glide by a backward 
and forward movement, without once taking it off the 
piece. When it is requisite that the hand should pass 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


2L 


over a large surface at once, without losing its point of 
support on the work-bench, the workman, on taking hold 
of the burnisher, should place it just underneath his 
little finger; by this means the work is done quicker, 
and the tool is more solidly fixed in the hand. 

It will sometimes happen in gilding that small spots 
on the deeper parts are overlooked, or that the gold is 
removed in some parts in applying the matting size. 
When this is the case, small pieces of leaf gold are to 
be put on by means of a pencil, after moistening the 
deficient places with a small brush; when dry, each of 
these spots should be covered with a little size. 

When it is desired to give the work the appearance 
of or moulu , dip a small fine pencil into the vermilion¬ 
ing composition, and apply it delicately into the inden¬ 
tations and such other parts, where it will, by being 
reflected, give a good effect to the gold. 

To bind and finish the work well , a second coat of the 
matting size should be passed over the matted parts, and 
hotter than the first. 

Gilding Plaster or Marble with Water Size . 

The chief difference to be observed when plaster or 
marble has to be gilt instead of wood, is to exclude the 
salt from the composition of the preparatory size, as in 
damp situations this would produce a white efflorescence 
upon the surface of the gold. Two coats of this size 
should be laid on; the first weak, that it may sink into 
the plaster or marble and moisten it perfectly; the 
second, strong. 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


«6 


Gilding Wood in Oil. 

The wood must first be covered, or primed, with two 
or three coatings of boiled linseed oil and carbonate of 
lead ; and, when dry, a thin coating of gold oil size laid 
upon it. In about twelve hours this sizing, if good, 
will be dry, when you may begin to apply the gold-leaf, 
dividing it, and laying it on in the same manner as in 
the case of the water-gilding; with this difference, that 
it is to be gently pressed down with a ball of soft cot¬ 
ton, when it will instantly adhere so firmly to the size, 
that, after a few minutes, the gentle application of a 
large cameFs-hair brush will sweep away all the loose 
particles of the leaf without disturbing the rest. 

The advantages of this oil-gilding are, that it is easilv 
and quickly done, is very durable, is not readily injured 
by changes of weather, even when exposed to the open 
air, and, when soiled, may be cleaned by a little warm 
water and a soft brush. It cannot, however, be bur¬ 
nished, and is, therefore, deficient in lustre. 

To gild Steel. 

Pour some of the ethereal solution of gold into a wine¬ 
glass, and dip into it the blade of a new penknife, lancet, 
or razor; withdraw the instrument, and allow the ether 
to evaporate: the blade will then be found covered with 
a beautiful coat of gold. The blade may be moistened 
with a clean rag or a small piece of very dry sponge 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


267 


dipped into the ether, and the same effect will be pro¬ 
duced. 


To gild Copper , Brass , &c. 

The gilding of these inferior metals and alloys of them 
is effected by the assistance of mercury, with which the 
gold is amalgamated. The mercury is evaporated, while 
the gold is fixed, by the application of heat; the whole 
is then burnished, or left mat, in whole or in part, ac¬ 
cording as required. 

In the large way of gilding, the furnaces are so con¬ 
trived that the volatilized mercury is again condensed, 
and preserved for further use, so that there is no loss in 
the operation. There is also a contrivance by which the 
volatile particles of mercury are prevented from injuring 
the gilders. 


Gilding Glass and Porcelain 

Dissolve in boiled linseed oil an equal weight either 
of copal or amber, and add as much oil of turpentine as 
will enable you to apply the compound or size thus 
formed, as thin as possible, to the parts of the glass in¬ 
tended to be gilt. The glass is to be placed in a stove 
till it is so warm as almost to burn the fingers when 
handled. At this temperature the size becomes adhesive, 
and a piece of leaf gold, applied in the usual way, will 
immediately stick. Sweep off the superfluous portions 
of the leaf; and when quite cold it may be burnished, 


268 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

taking care to interpose a piece of India paper between 
the gold and the burnisher. 

It sometimes happens, when the varnish is not very 
good, that by repeated washing the gold wears off ; on 
this account the practice of burning it in is sometimes 
had recourse to. For this purpose, some gold-powder 
is ground with borax, and in this state applied to the 
clean surface of the glass by a camel’s-hair pencil; when 
quite dry, the glass is put into a stove, heated to about 
the temperature of an annealing oven; the gum burns 
off, and the borax, by vitrifying, cements the gold with 
great firmness to the glass; after which it may be bur¬ 
nished. 

The gilding upon porcelain is in like manner fixed by 
heat and the use of borax; and this kind of ware, being 
neither transparent nor liable to soften, and thus to be 
injured in its form in a low red heat, is free from the 
risk and injury which the finer and more fusible kinds 
of glass are apt to sustain from such treatment. Porce¬ 
lain and other wares may be platinized, silvered, tinned, 
or bronzed, in a similar manner. 

Gilding Leather . 

In order to impress gilt figures, letters, and other 
marks upon leather, as on the covers of books, edgings 
for doors, &c., the leather must first be dusted over with 
very finely-powdered yellow resin, or mastic gum. The 
iron tools, or stamps, are then arranged on a rack before 
a clear fire, so as to be well heated, without becoming 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


289 


red hot. If the tools are letters, the} 7 have an alphabeti¬ 
cal arrangement on the rack. Each letter or stamp 
must be tried as to its heat, by imprinting its mark on 
the raw side of a piece of waste leather. A little prac¬ 
tice will enable the workman to judge of the heat. The 
tool is now to be pressed downwards on the gold leaf, 
which will, of course, be indented and show the figure 
imprinted on'it. The next letter or stamp is now to be 
taken and stamped in like manner, and so on with the 
others; taking care to keep the letters in an even line 
with each other, like those in a book. By this opera¬ 
tion the resin is melted; consequently the gold adheres 
to the leather. The superfluous gold may then be 
rubbed off by a cloth, the gilded impressions remaining 
on the leather. In this, as in every other operation, 
adroitness is acquired by practice. 

The cloth alluded to should be slightly greasy to 
retain the gold wiped off; (otherwise there will be a great 
waste in a few months;) the cloth will thus be soon 
completely saturated or loaded with the gold. When 
this is the case, these cloths are generally sold to the 
refiners, who burn them and recover the gold. Some of 
these afford so much gold by burning as to be worth 
from a guinea to a guinea and a half. 


Gilding Writings , Drawings, dee., on Paper or Parch¬ 
ment. 

Letters written on vellum or paper are gilded in three 
ways. In the first, a little size is mixed with the ink, 


270 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

and the letters are written as usual; when they are 
dry, a slight degree of stickiness is produced by breath¬ 
ing on them, upon which the gold leaf is immediately 
applied, and by a little pressure may be made to ad- ‘ 
here with sufficient firmness. In the second method, 
some white lead or chalk is ground up with strong 
size, and the letters are made with this by means of a 
brush. When the mixture is almost dry, the gold 
leaf may be laid on, and afterwards burnished. The 
third method is to mix up some gold powder with 
size, and to form the letters of this by means of a brush. 

Gilding the Edges of Paper. 

The edges of the leaves of books and letter paper are 
gilded whilst in a horizontal position in the book¬ 
binder’s press, by first applying a composition formed 
of four parts of Armenian bole and one of candied 
sugar, ground together with water to a proper con¬ 
sistence and laid on by a brush with the white of an 
egg. This coating, when nearly dry, is smoothed by 
the burnisher. It is then slightly moistened by a 
sponge dipped in clean water, and squeezed in the 
hand. The gold leaf is now taken upon a piece of 
cotton, from the leathern cushion, and applied on the 
moistened surface. When dry, it is to be burnished 
by rubbing the burnisher over it repeatedly from end 
to end, taking care not to wound the surface by the 
lioint. 

Oil Gold on Wood. 

As previously stated, the gilding on wood, called 
oil gold, cannot be burnished and is always of the nat¬ 
ural color of unwrought gold. It is often used for 
parts of furniture and mouldings of rooms, and as it 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


271 


stands the weather, it is also employed for outside 
work. The surface to be gilded must first be rubbed 
smooth with shave grass. After this apply a priming 
of glue size and two coats of oil paint and one of flat¬ 
ting. To enrich the color of the gold, these last may 
be laid down in red or yellow. White, however, is 
usually preferred, as the darker color renders any im¬ 
perfection in the gold-sizing more difficult to detect. 
When the last coat of paint is thoroughly dry, rub it 
over with wash-leather to render it smooth and free 
from dust and grit. If any patterns or figures are to 
be left ungilded, they should be slightly pounced over 
with white to prevent the gold leaf adhering to them. 
Another way is to paint them over with white of egg, 
which, if too thick, may be reduced with a little water. 
The following method has also been recommended: 
Take a white potato, slice it smooth and level with a 
sharp knife, and rub it over the surface before the siz¬ 
ing has been applied, then apply the gold leaf. A wet 
sponge will remove the surplus leaf without any 
trouble. 

When all is ready for sizing, strain sufficient size 
through muslin, and put some out on the palette, add¬ 
ing to it enough ochre or vermilion, mixing with oil 
alone, to color. Then with a stiff hog-hair tool com¬ 
mence painting it on the surface, taking care to lay it 
on smoothly and not too thick, as in the latter case it 
runs and leaves wrinkles in the gilding. Size always 
from left to right, beginning on the top of the surface, 
and working downward. Move the brush lightly and 
firmly, mapping out the surface to be sized into sev¬ 
eral squares, and finishing and cross-hatching each 
before proceeding onwards. If there are patterns to be 
left ungilded, carefully trace round their outline with 


272 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

a sable pencil and then fill in the interstices. When 
the whole surface is covered with size, give it a thor¬ 
ough inspection to make sure there is no faulty portion, 
and if there is, delicately touch in the size with a small 
pencil. When very perfect gilding is required it 
should be sized twice, the first being allowed to dry 
thoroughly before the second is applied. In carved 
work be careful to dip the brush down in the hollows 
of the carving. It is a good plan to size overnight so 
as to gild in the morning. But all size does not dry 
alike, sometimes taking 12 to 24 or 30 hours before it 
is ready for the gold leaf; in damp weather or moist 
locations always more than in dry. The readiness of * 
the size can only be ascertained by the touch. If on 
being touched by the finger the surface daubs or conies 
off, it is not ready; but if it feels clammy and sticky, 
it is sufficiently dry. If too dry, it must be sized 
again. The books of gold leaf should always be placed 
before a fire half an hour previous to use, in order to 
dry the gold and make it more manageable. When 
ail is ready, shake out several leaves upon the gold 
cushion and blow them towards the parchment screen. 
Then carefully raise one leaf with the blade of a knife 
and place it on the cushion, gently breathing on it to 
flatten it out. If it curls up, work it about with the 
knife-blade until it lies flat. Then replace the knife 
in its loop under the cushion, and taking the tip pass 
it lightly over your hair, thus acquiring sufficient 
greasiness to enable the gold to stick to it. Lay the 
hairy portion of the tip upon the gold leaf, and then 
raising it apply it to the sized surface. As in sizing, 
work from left to right, and be especially careful to let 
each leaf overlap slightly, so as to avoid gaps and 
spaces. Lay on whole leaves as far as the space per- 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


273 

mits, and then proceed to gild the curves and corners 
which need smaller pieces. Place a leaf flat and smooth 
on the cushion, and then taking the knife in the right 
hand draw the edge easily and evenly along it with a 
gentle pressure. Divide the leaf into as many pieces 
as required and lay on as before. When all the ground 
is complete, inspect it carefully to make sure that there 
are no portions ungilt, however small, and mend them 
at once. Next take a piece of cotton-wool and gently 
dab or press the gold down all over, finally brushing 
off the superfluous pieces either with cotton-wool or a 
camel’s hair brush. It is a good plan to stipple the 
gold with a large, stiff hog-bristle tool, quite dry and 
clean, as this gradually softens and removes the marks 
of joining and other little imperfections. Finally 
smooth the gold with a clean piece of wash-leather, 
and it is completed. 

With regard to gilding with japanner’s size the same 
instructions apply, except as to the time necessary to 
wait between sizing and gilding. If japanner’s size is 
used pure, it will be ready in from 20 to 30 minutes, 
but better gilding can be made by mixing one-third 
oil size with two-thirds of japanner’s size. This will 
be ready in about 2 to 4 hours from the time of putting 
on. When all the gilding is finished, dilute 1 part of 
very clean and pure parchment size with 2 parts of 
water, and brush it over the entire surface of the gold 
to enrich and preserve it. If it is necessary to gild in 
a position much exposed to touch, as the base of a 
pillar or string-course, it is as well to give the gold 
a coat of mastic varnish thinned with turpentine. 
There are various processes which tend to enrich and 
vary the effect of gilding. Glazings of transparent 
colors are sometimes applied for the purpose of dead- 
18 


274 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

ening its lustre. Raw sienna passed thinly over a 
sheet of gold gives it a leathery appearance. A good 
effect may be produced by stencilling a small pattern 
in umber, sienna, or Indian red over gold, especially 
if there is foliage, or arabesque work upon the gilding, 
as the small design affords an agreeable relief. This is 
the easiest mode of gilding; any other metallic leaves 
can be applied in a similar manner. 

Gilding on Wood in the Open Air. 

First get a good surface, then put on the size. Fat 
oil is the best size for outside work. Tint the size with 
chrome yellow, finely ground, and thin with oil of 
turpentine until it works well. If the work is to be 
done in a hurry, a little japan may be added to the 
size to make it dry faster. Wait until it dries tacky. 
It is important to get the right tack on your size. If 
too dry the leaf will not adhere well; if not dry 
enough the work will look shabby and rub up under 
the finger. If pressed for time varnish may be used 
for sizing, instead of fat oil. It dries faster, and care 
must be taken not to size too far ahead, otherwise the 
‘ ‘ tack ’ 1 may dry out before it can be all covered. 
Now to handle the leaf: Go into a quiet room, lay 
the book of leaf on a table, with the back of the book 
toward you, carefully turn back the first paper, then 
with the first finger of the left hand hold down the 
left-hand corner of the book next to you, and tear off 
the paper by pulling to the right. I^ow, lay the paper 
flat on your hand, and rub it over your hair, from 
which it will take oil enough to make the leaf adhere 
to it. Now, lay the paper carefully down upon the 
leaf, and rub it down with your fingers to make the 
leaf stick to it, then you can use it whole for gilding 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


275 


e surfaces, or cut it up with shears in any shape 
.1 want it. If the leaf does not adhere well to the 
iper, your hair either does not afford enough oil, or 
„ ou have not rubbed hard enough. If you find your 
hair will not make it adhere, rub your hands over a 
bar of hard soap and rub them well through the hair; 
then by rubbing the paper over it the leaf will stick to 
the paper. Prepare in this way all the leaf you think 
you will need, and after carefully placing it in a box or 
basket you are ready to go out and lay it on. Then all 
you have to do is to lay your paper on the size, leaf 
side down, rub it down with your fingers and then 
pull off the paper. Any spot not covered can be 
mended by holding a strip of paper over it, and press¬ 
ing down with the thumb or finger. If the paper in 
the book is colored so that it will color the hair, it is 
best to cut up white paper of about the same texture, 
the size of the book, and use it instead of the jiaper in 
the book to take up the leaf on. 

This is the best method for gilding on the outside 
when the air is stirring. Some gilders cut the bind¬ 
ing of the book and loosen all the leaves at once, but 
in that way any little mishap is liable to get the book 
out of shape and ruin more or less of the leaf. There 
is a knack of taking the “ kinks” out of a rumpled or 
turned-up leaf by a puff of the breath. The novice is 
apt to blow the leaf into an awful fix in his first at¬ 
tempts, but with practice he will find that a quite 
badly mussed leaf can be made tolerably smooth by a 
soft puff from the right direction—but it must be soft , 
or away will go the leaf into an irredeemable crumple. 

Regilding Frames. 

Wash the frame well with a sponge and clean water, 


276 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

and let it dry. Then mix water gold size with enough 
parchment size to enable you to work it on the frame 
with a camel’s hair brush. Apply two coats of it; 
when dry rub it over with a piece of tine sand-paper; 
it will then be ready for gilding. When the frame is 
covered rest it on its edge. When perfectly dry dip a 
pencil into water, and wipe the gold over with it. It 
will take the particles of gold off, and make it appear 
solid. For any parts not covered take bits of leaf with 
a dry pencil and lay on as before, then give the whole 
a coat of clear parchment size, brush the black edges 
over with ochre, and the frame is then ready. 

To Gild Signs. 

Use gold and silver leaf. Take a little fine isinglass, 
as much as will lie on a five-cent piece, and dissolve in 
a little boiling water. Add as much alcohol as there 
is water and strain through silk. Paint the letters on 
a sheet of paper with Brunswick black ; fix the paper, 
with the writing reversed, on the glass. Use the isin¬ 
glass solution as mordant, laying it on with a camel’s 
hair pencil, and then apply the gold leaf. Place the 
glass in a warm room, and when the gilding is dry rub 
it over with a piece of cotton-wool. Pass a flat camel’s 
hair brush moistened with the isinglass solution lightly 
over the gold letters, the solution being heated for this 
operation. A second coating of gold leaf will improve 
the work. 

Gilding Glass. 

Thoroughly clean the glass, then take some very 
weak isinglass size, heat it, and float the glass, where 
the gold is to be laid, with the warm size and a soft 
brush. Then lay the gold on with a gilder’s tip, pre¬ 
viously drawing it over the hair of your head to cause 


PRACTICE OF GILDING. 


2'77 


the gold to adhere to it. Tilt the glass to allow the 
superfluous size to run away, then let it dry, and if it 
does not look sufficiently solid upon the face,, give 
another layer of gold the same way. Where the black 
lines are to show, take a piece of pointed fire-wood, 
cut to the width the lines are needed, and with a 
straight-edge draw a line with the piece of wood which, 
if made true and smooth, will take the gold off clean, 
and so square and sharpen up all the edges, lines, etc. 
When this is done give a coat of Brunswick black 
thinned with a little oil of turpentine and the lines 
will show black, and it will preserve the gold. Try a 
small piece first, so as to get all in order. 

To Repair Lustre Gilding. 

Make a compound by melting Venice turpentine, 
white wax, and a little soap, over a moderate fire. 
Apply the mixture to the injured places with a brush. 
Let it remain for an hour, then lay on the gilding. 

Gilding on Granite. 

Apply a coat of size, and then, two or three coats of 
size and fine powdered whiting. Let each coat dry 
and rub down with fine glass paper before the next is 
applied. Then go over it thinly and evenly with gold 
size and apply the gold leaf. 

To Gild Letters on Marble. 

First apply a coating of size, then successively sev¬ 
eral coats of size thickened with whiting, until a good 
face is produced. Let each coat dry and rub it down 
with fine glass paper before applying the next. Then 
go over the marble thinly and evenly with gold size. 
Apply the gold leaf and burnish with an agate. The 
gold leaf must be applied several times to give a good 
effect. 


278 


PAINTER, GIEDER, AND VARNISHER. 


FOILS. 

Foils are thin plates or leaves of metal that are put 
under stones, or compositions in imitation of stones, 
when they are set, either to increase the lustre and play 
of the stones, or more generally to improve the colour, 
by giving an additional force to the tinge, whether it be 
natural or artificial, by a ground of the same hue. 

There are two kinds of foils. One is colourless, 
where the effect of giving lustre to the stone is produced 
by the polish of the surface, making it act as a mirror, 
and, by reflecting the light, preventing the deadness 
which attends a duller grouud under the stone, and 
bringing; it nearer to the effect of the diamond. The 
other is coloured with some pigment or stain, either of 
the same hue as the stone, or of some other, which is 
intended to change the hue of the stone in some degree; 
thus, a yellow foil may be put under green which is too 
much inclined to blue, or under crimson, where it is de¬ 
sired to have the appearance of orange or scarlet. 

Foils may be made of copper or tin. Silver has been 
sometimes used, and even gold mixed with it; but the 
expense of either is needless, as copper may be made to 
answer the same end. 

Copper intended for foils is prepared by taking cop¬ 
per plates beaten to a proper thickness, passing them 
betwixt a pair of fine steel rollers very closely set, and 


FOILS. 


279 


drawing them as thin as possible. They are polished 
with very fine whiting, or rotten-stone, till they shine, 
and have as much brightness as can be given them, and 
then they will be fit to receive the colour. If they are 
intended for a purple or crimson colour, the foils should 
first be whitened in the following manner: Take a small 
quantity of silver, and dissolve it in aqua-fortis) then 
put bits of copper into the solution, and precipitate the 
silver ; which being done, the fluid must be poured off, 
and fresh water added to it to wash away all the re¬ 
mainder of the first fluid ) after which the silver must 
be dried, and an equal weight of cream of tartar and 
common salt ground with it, till the whole is reduced to 
a very fine powder. With this mixture, the foils, 
slightly moistened, must be rubbed by the finger, or a 
bit of linen rag, till they are of the degree of whiteness 
desired. 

The manner of preparing foils, so as to give colourless 
stones the greatest degree of play ana lustre, by raising 
so high a polish or smoothness on the surface as in many 
instances to nearly resemble the effect of diamonds, I 
shall not here detail, as it is not one in which the gene- 
ral occupations of the Painter, Varnisher, or Gilder, 
would be of assistance. The method of colouring these 
substances I shall here describe. 


To Colour Foils. 

Two methods have been invented for colouring foils; 
the one by tinging the surface of the copper with the 


280 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHEK. 

colour required by means of smoke, the other by stain¬ 
ing or painting it with some colouring substance. 

The colours used for painting foils may be mixed 
with either oil, water rendered glutinous by gum-arabic, 
size, or varnish. Where deep colours are wanted, oil 
is most proper, because some pigments become wholly 
transparent in it, as lake or Prussian blue: the yellow 
and green may be better laid on in varnish, as these 
colours may be had in perfection from a tinge wholly 
dissolved in spirit of wine, in the same manner as in 
the case of lacquers; and the most beautiful green is to 
be produced by distilled verdigris, which is apt to lose 
its colour and turn black with oil. In common cases, 
however, any of the colours may be, with the least 
trouble, laid on with isinglass size, in the same manner 
as the glazing colours used in miniature painting. 

Where the ruby is to be imitated, a little lake used 
in isinglass size, carmine, or shell-lac varnish, is to be 
employed, if the glass or paste be of a full crimson, 
verging towards the purple; but if the glass incline to 
the scarlet, or orange, very bright lake, not purple, may 
be used alone in oil. 

For garnet red, dragon’s blood dissolved in seed-lac 
varnish may be used; and for the vinegar garnet , the 
orange lake, tempered with shell-lac varnish, will be 
found excellent. 

For the amethyst , lake, with a little Prussian blue, 
used with oil, and very thinly spread on the foil, will 
answer. 

For blue , where a deep colour or sapphire is wanted, 


FOILS. 


281 


Prussian blue, not too deep, should be used in oil, and 
be spread more or less thinly on the foil, according to 
the lightness or deepness of the colour required. 

For eagle marine , common verdigris, with a little 
Prussian blue, tempered in shell-lac varnish. 

Where a full yellow is desired, the foil may be co¬ 
loured with a yellow lacquer, laid on as for other pur¬ 
poses. For light yellows, the copper ground of the foil 
itself, properly burnished, will be sufficient. 

For green , where a deep hue is required, the crystals 
of verdigris, tempered in shell-lac varnish, should be 
used; but where the emerald is to be imitated, a little 
yellow lacquer should be added, to bring the colour to a 
truer green, and less verging to the blue. 

The stones of more diluted colour, such as the ame¬ 
thyst , topaz , vinegar garnet , and eagle marine , may be 
very cheaply imitated by transparent white glass or 
paste, even without foils. This is to be done by tem¬ 
pering the colours above mentioned with turpentine and 
mastic, and painting the socket in which the counterfeit 
stone is to be set with the mixture, the socket and stone 
itself being previously heated. In this case, however, 
the stone should be immediately set, and the socket 
closed upon it before the mixture cools and grows hard. 
The orange lake, mentioned under the head of garnet 
red, was invented for this purpose, in which it has a , 
beautiful effect, and has been used with great success. 
The colour it produces is that of the vinegar garnet, 
which it affords with great brightness. 

The colours before directed to be used in oil should 


282 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

be extremely well ground in oil of turpentine, and tem¬ 
pered with oil—nut or poppy oil; or, if time can be 
given for their drying, with strong fat oil, diluted with 
spirits of turpentine, which will gain a fine polish of 
itself. The colours used in varnish should be likewise 
thoroughly well ground and mixed; and in the case of 
dragon’s blood in the seed-lac varnish and the lacquer, 
the foils should be warmed before they are laid out. 
All the mixtures should be laid on the foils with a broad 
soft brush, which must be passed from one end to the 
other, and no part should be crossed or twice gone over 
—or, at least, not till the first coat be dry ; when, if the 
colour does not lie enough, a second coat may be given. 


GLASS-STAINING. 


OQ > 
_o.j 


GLASS-STAINING. 

In the production of figures on glass, fragments of 
coloured glass are used, which are cut in pieces of the 
proper shape, and' united by lead. In this way are 
formed the ground tints, skies, draperies, ornaments, 
&c. The shades, heads, hands, &c., are then painted 
in vitrifiable colours, which, after being laid on, are burnt 
or fired into the glass. The precaution should be ob¬ 
served in joining the pieces of coloured glass, that the 
lead joints do not interfere with the effect of the picture. 
That which characterizes painting on glass, and dis¬ 
tinguishes it from painting on porcelain, is that the 
artist makes use of both surfaces of the glass. The sur¬ 
face placed towards the spectator receives all the shades, 
which are thus rendered more life-like and better de¬ 
fined. All the shading colours are likewise placed on 
this side; all the lights of the picture are thrown on 
the other side. By this means colours may be used 
which would be injured by contact with each other, 
and the superposition of which would produce peculiar 
tints not desirable. 

The pigments used in painting on glass are principally 
metallic oxides and chlorides, and as, in most of these, 
the colour is not brought out until after the painting 
is submitted to heat, it is necessary to ascertain before¬ 
hand if the colours are properly mixed, by painting on 


284 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

slips cf glass, and exposing them to heat in the muffle. 
The painter is guided by these trial pieces, in laying on 
his colours. As the effect of a picture on glass is pro¬ 
duced by transmitted and not by reflected light, it ia 
necessary that the colours, after being burnt on, should 
be more or less transparent. 

As the coloured glass which forms the ground on 
wbich the artist works is manufactured in glass-works, 
and is an article of commerce, it is necessary to consider 
here only the colours which are burnt on in the muffle. 
The temperature at which these are burnt on is never 
raised above the melting point of silver. 

In oil and water-colour paintings, the pigments are 
rubbed up with oil, solutions of gum, water, &c. In 
painting on glass, it is necessary to have a proper vehiclo 
for the colours, which will become liquid at a red heat, •* 
and which performs the same function as oils, &c., in or¬ 
dinary painting. This vehicle is called a flux. It en¬ 
velops the colour which is mechanically mixed with it, 
and glues it, as it were, to the glass. The colour and 
the flux are often confounded, however, under the name 
of vitriflMble colours , which are mixtures of colour and 
flux. The vehicle or flux varies with colour, but these 
variations are very limited, as the colours ought to be 
capable of mixing with each other. The flux ordinarily 
employed is a simple silicate of lead, or a mixture of 
silicate of lead and borax. Experiment has shown that 
potash and soda cannot be substituted for borax. The 
following are the proportions of the ingredients of vari¬ 
ous fluxes:— 


GLASS-STAINING. 


285 


No. 1. 

Minium or red lead ... 3 parts. 

White sand washed .... 1 part. 

This mixture is melted, by which it is converted into 
a greenish-yellow glass. 


No. 2.—Gray Flux. 

Of No. 1.8 parts. 

Fused borax in powder . . .1 part. 

This mixture is melted. 


No. 3.— Flux for Carmines and Greens. 

Fused borax.5 parts. 

Calcined flint . . . , . 3 parts. 

Pure minium . . . . . 1 part. 

This mixture is also melted. 

The various colors used in glass painting are ob¬ 
tained from the following substances :— 

The blue on glass is produced with cobalt; the purples, 
violets , and carmines, with the purple of Cassius ; the 
reds, browns, &c., with the peroxide of iron ; the greens 
with the silicate of copper, sometimes with the oxide of 
chromium, (in glass-painting, greens of copper are pre¬ 
ferred to those of chromium, on account of their greater 
transparency,) often with a mixture of blue and yellow ; 
the blacks, grays, &c., with the oxides of manganese, 


286 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

cobalt, and iron ; the yellows with the oxide of uranium, 
the chromate of lead, certain combinations of silver ) 
finally, the compounds of antimonious acid, and of ox¬ 
ide of lead, or of the subsulphate of iron. 

Beautiful yellow tones may be produced on glass by 
placing on its surface a layer of three parts of pipe-clay, 
well burnt and pounded, and rubbed up with one part of 
chloride of silver. The glass is then submitted to heat 
in a muffle. After cooling, the layer of clay is removed, 
and the glass is stained yellow. The tint depends on 
the nature of the glass and the proportion of chloride 
of silver. Glass, containing about eight or ten per cent, 
of alumina, takes a more beautiful tint than glass con¬ 
taining only two or three per cent. 

The following are some of the colours used in the 
celebrated porcelain manufactory of Sevres, and the pro¬ 
portions in which they are compounded. These colours, 
though intended for painting on porcelain, are nearly all 
applicable to painting on glass. 


Blues are obtained with the silicate of cobalt. 
The oxide of cobalt must be in the state of silicate, in 
order that the blue colour be developed. The colour, 
once produced, is unalterable at all temperatures. 


No. 1 .—Indigo Blue. 

Oxide of cobalt . . . . 1 part. 

Flux No. 3 . . . 2 parts. 


GLASS-STAINING. 


287 


No. 2.— Turquoise Blue. 

Oxide of cobalt . . . .1 part. 

Oxide of zinc . . . 3 or 4 parts. 

Flux No. 3 . . . . 6 “ 

Melt and pour out. If it is not sufficiently green, 
increase the zinc and flux. 

No. 3 .—Azure Blue. 

Oxide of cobalt .... 1 part. 

Oxide of zinc .... 2 parts 

Flux No. 2 . . . . . 8 " 

Melt them together. 

No. 4 .—Deep Azure Blue. 

Oxide of cobalt . . . .1 part. 

Oxide of zinc .... 2 parts. 

Flux No. 2 . . . . . 5 “ 

The beauty of this colour depends on the proportion 
of flux. As little as possible is to be used; it must, 
however, be brilliant. Sometimes less is used than the 
proportion indicated. 

No. 5 .—Sky Blue, for the Browns. 

Oxide of cobalt . . . .1 part. 

Oxide of zinc .... 2 parts. 

Flux No. 2.12 “ 

Pound up, melt, and pour out. 


288 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARN1SITER. 


No 6.— Violet Blue , for ground colour. 

Blue No. 5.4 parts. 

Violet of gold, No. 31 . 2 im 

More or less of the violet of gold is added. Triturate 
without melting. 

No. 7 .—Lavender Blue, for ground tint. 

Blue No. 5.4 parts. 

Violet of gold, No. 31 . . 3 “ 

Sometimes a little carmine is added. Pulverize with¬ 
out melting. 

Greens are obtained with the oxide of chromium, 
or with the deutoxide of copper, or with mixtures of 
oxide of chromium and silicate of cobalt, when bluish 
tones are wished. When these greens contain the oxide 
of copper, they require a previous fusion, for it is only 
in the state of silicate or of salt that this oxide gives a 
green. The greens of copper disappear entirely at a high 
heat. 

When the colours are required to be transparent, 
the oxide of copper is used instead of the oxide of 
chromium. 


No, 8 .—Emerald Green. 

Oxide of copper .... 1 part. 

Antimonic acid ... 10 parts. 

Flux No. 1 . 30 u 

Pulverize together, and melt. 



GLASS-STAINING. 


289 


No. 9 .—Bluish Green . 

Green oxide of chromium . . 1 part. 

Oxide of cobalt ... 2 parts. 

Triturate, and melt at a high heat. The product is a 
button slightly melted, from which is removed the por¬ 
tion in contact with the crucible. This button is pounded 
up, and three parts of flux No. 3, for one of the button, 
are added to it. 

No. 10.— Grass Green. 

Green oxide of chromium . . 1 part. 

Flux No. 3 . . . 3 parts. 

Triturate, and melt. 

Nos. 10, 11, 12.— Dragon , Pistache , and Olive Green. 

They are prepared with the oxide of chromium, mixed 
with flux No. 3, with additions of deep or clear yellow 
No, 15 or 16, ascertaining the proportions by trial. 

Yellows are commonly obtained by means of 
antimonic acid and the oxide of lead, (litharge.) It 
is the Naples yellow, or very nearly so. Sometimes 
stannic acid (peroxide of tin) is added, and oxide of 
zinc, and often also some subsulphate of the peroxide of 
iron, prepared by exposing to the air weak solutions of 
the protosulphate of iron, (copperas.) 

These colours do not change in the muffle, but they 
disappear almost entirely at a high heat. They are 
19 


290 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

easily altered by smoke, by which the oxide of lead is 
reduced, which produces a dirty gray. 

Yellows are made with the chromate of lead, but 
their use is too uncertain. In Germany, the oxide of 
uranium is employed, which gives a beautiful yellow; but 
in France it is found to produce no better yellow than 
those already known. 

No. 13.— Sulphur Yellow. 

Antimonic acid . . .1 part. 

Subsulphate of the peroxide of iron 8 parts. 

Oxide of zinc . . . . 4 u 

Flux No. 1 . . . 36 “ 

Rub up together, and melt; if this colour is too deep, 
the salt of iron is diminished. 

No. 14.— Fixed Yellow for touches. 

Yellow No. 13 . . .1 part. 

White enamel of commerce . 2 parts. 

Melt, and pour out. If it is not sufficiently fixed, a 
little sand may be added. 

No. 15.— Yellow for Browns and Greens. 

Antimonic acid . . . ,2 parts. 

Subsulphate of iron ... 1 part. 

Flux No. 1 . . . .9 parts. 

This colour is melted, and sometimes a little Naples 
yellow is added if it is too soft, (i. e. meltB too easily.) 


GLASS-STAINING. 


291 


No. 16.— Deep Yellow , to mix with the Chromium 

Greens. 

Antimonic acid . , . . 2 parts. 

Subsulphate of iron . . 1 part. 

Flux No. 1 .... 10 parts. 

Melt, and pour out. The subsulphate of iron may be 
increased a little : the proportions of flux vary. 

No. 17.— Jonquille Yellow for flowers. 

Litharge.18 parts. 

Sand ..... 6 u 

The product of the calcination of 

equal parts of lead and tin . 2 u 

Carbonate of soda . . .1 part. 

Antimonic acid ... 1 u 

Rub together or triturate, and melt. 

No. 18.— Wax Yellow. 

Litharge . . . . .18 parts. 

Sand.4 “ 

Oxide of antimony . . . 2 u 

Sienna earth ... 2 “ 

Melt. If it is too deep, the proportion of Sienna 
earth may be decreased. 

No. 19.— Fixed Wax Yellow. 

No. 18 mixed, without melting, with white enamel or 
sand, in order to harden it. The quantity depends on 
the greater or less fusibility of the yellow. 


292 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

No. 20.— Nankin Yellow for grounds . 

Subsulphate of iron ... 1 part. 

Oxide of zinc ... 2 parts. 

Flux No. 1 . . . . 10 “ 

Triturate. 

No. 21. —Deep Nankin Yellow. 

Subsulpkate of iron . . .1 part. 

Oxide of zinc ... 2 parts. 

Flux No. 2 .... 8 u 

Triturate without melting. 

No. 22. —Pale Yellow Ochre. 

Subsulphate of iron . . .1 part. 

Oxide of zinc ... 2 parts. 

Flux No. 2 . . . 6 u 

Triturate without melting. 

No. 23. —Deep Yellow Ochre } called Yellow Brown. 

Subsulphate of iron ... 1 part. 

Oxide of zinc ... 1 u 

Flux No. 2 . . . .5 parts. 

Triturate without melting. 

No. 24. —Brown Yellow Ochre. 

Yellow ochre, No. 23 . 10 parts. 

Sienna earth . . .1 part. 

Mix without melting. 


GLASS-STAINING. 


293 


No. 25.— Isabella Yellow , for grounds. 

Yellow for browns, No. 15 . 20 parts. 

Blood red, No. 28 . . .1 part. 

No. 26.— Orange Yellow, for grounds. 

Chromate of lead ... 1 part. 

Minium . . . . .3 parts. 


No. 27.— Brick Red. 

Yellow No. 23 . . . .12 parts. 

Red oxide of iron ... 1 part. 

No. 28.— Deep Blood Red. 

Subsulphate of iron, calcined in a 
muffle until it becomes a beauti¬ 
ful capucine red ... 1 part. 

Flux No. 2 . . . 3 parts. 

Mix without melting. 

Colours of Gold.— These are carmine reds, purples, 
and violets, made by means of the precipitated purple 
of Cassius. These colours are very delicate, and are 
the only ones which change their tints in the fire. Un- 
burnt, they are of dirty violet tint, but are changed into 
a lively and pure tone by a moderate burning. In a 
stronger fire, these colours become yellowish, and even 
completely disappear. It is necessary to mix the purple 
of Cassius with considerable flux, and this mixture must 


294 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

be made while the purple precipitate is still moist. If 
it was suffered to dry, the colour would be spoiled. 
With one part of purple of Cassius, six parts of flux 
are mixed. The purple powder of Cassius gives a purple 
by itself. Mixed with chloride of silver, which gives 
to it a yellow, a carmine tone is produced. With a 
little cobalt blue, it is rendered violet. 

No. 29 .—Hard Carmine. 

It is the purple of Cassius mixed with flux No. 3, and 
chloride of silver, previously melted with ten parts of 
flux No. 3. The proportions vary. The whole is ground 
on a glass, the precipitate of gold being still moist. 

No. 30 .—Pure Purple. 

The purple powder of Cassius mixed while moist 
with flux No. 3, and sometimes a little chloride of 
silver previously melted with flux No. 3. If the purple, 
when prepared, does not melt sufficiently easy, some flux 
may be added when it is dry. 

No. 31 .—Deep Violet. 

The purple of Cassius; in place of flux No. 3, flux 
No. 1 is mixed with it. Sometimes a little of blue 
No. 6 is added. 

Colours of Iron. —Besides the subsulphate of the 
peroxide, the peroxide itself is employed to produce rose 
tints, reds, violet tones, and browns. The pure peroxide 


GLASS-STAINING. 


295 


can produce the first three tones, and it is easily imagined 
when we know that its shade varies from rose to deep 
violet, according to the temperature to which it has been 
submitted. Slightly heated, it is rose or red ) at a forge 
heat, it becomes violet. As to the browns of iron, 
they require some mixtures. These colours are unalter* 
able in the muffle, but they disappear in great part at a 
hign heat. In the first case the oxide remains free, 
and in the second it is united with the silica. A too 
fusible flux or glass produces the same effect. 

No. 32 .—Flesh Red. 

The sulphate of iron, putin small crucibles and lightly 
calcined, produces a suitable red oxide. Those which 
have the desired tone are selected. All the flesh reds 
are made in this way, and vary only in the degrees of 
heat which they receive. 

Browns may be obtained with various mixtures of 
peroxide or subsulphate of iron with the oxide of man¬ 
ganese, silicate of cobalt, or silicate of copper. These 
colours, unalterable in the heat of the muffle, lose their 
intensity at a high heat. 

No. 33.— Clove Brown. 

The basis of this brown is yellow ochre No. 23, to 
which is added either the oxide of cobalt in small quan¬ 
tities, or umber or sienna earth. Proportions are tried 
according to the tone required. 


296 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


No. 34.— Wood Brown. 

The same process as the clove brown, only without 
the oxide of cobalt. 

No. 35 .—Hair Brown. 

Yellow ochre, No. 23 . . 15 parts. 

Oxide of cobalt .... 1 part. 

Well triturated and calcined, in order to give the 
tone to it. 

No. 36 .—Liver Brown. 

Oxide of iron made of a red brown, and mixed with 
three times its weight of flux No. 2. A tenth of sienna 
earth is added to it, if it is not sufficiently deep. 

No. 37 .—Sepia Brown. 

Deep yellow ochre . . .15 parts. 

Oxide of cobalt . . . .1 part. 

A little manganese is added if it is not sufficiently 
deep. All the ingredients are well mixed, and calcined 
in order to produce the tone. 

No. 38 .— White. 

The white enamel of commerce in cakes. 

No. 39. 

Another white is prepared by mixing equal parts of 
fluxes No. 1 and No. 3. 


GLASS-STAINING. 


297 


No. 40.— Yellowish-Gray for Browns and Reds. 

Yellow, No. 15 . . . 1 part. 

Blue, No. 5 . . . . 1 “ 

Oxide of zinc . . . 2 or 3 parts. 

Flux, No. 2 . . . . 5 “ 

Sometimes a little black is added, according to the 
tone which the mixture produces. The proportions of 
the blue and yellow vary. 

No. 41.— Bluish-Gray for Mixtures . 

Blue previously made by melting 
together three parts of flux No. 

1, and one part of the mixture of 

Oxide of cobalt ... 8 parts. 

Oxide of zinc .... 1 part. 

Sulphate of iron calcined at a forge 

heat ..... 1 u 

Flux, No. 2 . . . . .3 parts. 

Triturate, and add a little manganese in order to ren¬ 
der it more gray. 

No. 42.— Grayish-hlach for Mixtures. 

Yellow ochre, No. 23 . . 15 parts. 

Oxide of Cobalt . . . .1 part. 

Triturate and calcine in a crucible until it has the 
desired tone. A little oxide of manganese is added in 
order to make it blacker; sometimes a little more of 
oxide of cobalt. 


298 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


No. 43 .—Deep Black. 


Oxide of cobalt 
“ “ copper . 

“ “ manganese . 

Flux, No. 1. 

Fused borax 
Melt, and add 
Oxide of . manganese . 

“ “ copper . 

Triturate without melting. 


2 parts. 

. 2 11 



i part. 


1 “ 

. 2 parts. 


The colours thus prepared, after having been rubbed 
up on a plate of ground glass with the spirits of turpen¬ 
tine or lavender, thickened in the air, are applied 
with a hair pencil. Before using them, however, it is 
necessary to try them on small pieces of glass, and ex¬ 
pose them to the fire, to ascertain if the desired tone of 
colour is produced. The artist must be guided by these 
proof pieces in using his colours. The proper glass for 
receiving these colours should be uniform, colourless, and 
difficult of fusion. For this reason, crown glass made 
with a little alkali or kelp is preferred. 

A design must be drawn upon paper, and placed beneath 
the plate of glass; though the artist cannot regulate his 
tints directly by his palette, but by specimens of the 
colours producible from his palette pigments after they 
are fired. The upper side of the glass being sponged 
over with gum-water, affords, when dry, a surface proper 


GLASS-STAINING. 


299 


for receiving the colours, without the risk of their run¬ 
ning irregularly, as they would be apt to do on the 
slippery glass. The artist first draws on the plate, with 
a fine pencil, all the traces which mark the great outlines 
and shades of the figures. This is usually done in 
black, or at least some strong colour, such as brown, 
blue, green, or red. In laying on these, the painter is 
guided by the same principles as the engraver, when he 
produces the effect of light and shade, by dots, lines, or 
hatches; and he employs that colour to produce the 
shades which will harmonize best with the colour which 
is afterwards to be applied; but for the deeper shades, 
black is in general used. When this is finished, the 
whole picture will be represented in lines or hatches 
similar to an engraving, finished up to the highest effect 
possible; and afterwards, when it is dry, the vitrifying 
colours are laid on by means of larger hair pencils; 
their selection being regulated by the burnt specimen 
tints. When he finds it necessary to lay two colours 
adjoining, which are apt to run together in the muffle, 
he must apply one of them to the back of the glass. 
The yellow formed with chloride of silver is generally- 
laid on the back of the glass. After colouring, the artist 
proceeds to bring out the lighter effects by taking off’ the 
colour in the proper place, with a goosequill cut like a 
pen without a slit. By working this upon the glass, 
he removes the colour from the parts where the lights 
should be the strongest; such as the hair, eyes, the re¬ 
flection of bright surfaces and light parts of draperies. 


300 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

The blank pen may be employed either to make the 
lights by lines, or hatches and dots, as is most suitable 
to the subject. 

To fire the paintings, a furnace with a muffle is used. 
The muffles are made of refractory clay. They have 
been made of cast iron, but these are no longer employed. 
Fig. 6 is an elevation and transverse section of the fur- 


Fig. 6. 



nace, and its muffle in place. Fig. 7 is a longitudinal 
seotion. Figs. 8 and 9, views of the muffle; u is the 

































GLASS-STAINING. 


301 


Fig. 7. 



door of the ashpit e; p the door of the furnace// y, 
are the small arches of the dome of the furnace which 


Fig. 8. 



Fig. 9. 







































































































302 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISH ER. 

supports the muffle. c, c are the flues through which 
the flame escapes; n is a pipe or tube on the top of the 
muffle to allow vapours to escape; r, r, tubes in the door 
of the muffle, through which the proof pieces are passed. 
In the interior of the muffle, small brackets or projec¬ 
tions i, i are placed, which support bars of iron encased 
in porcelain, on which the plates of glass which are to be 
burned rest. Dry pulverized lime is sometimes laid on 
the bottom of the muffle and the glass rested on the lime. 
Several layers of glass may be placed in the muffle to¬ 
gether, with layers of lime between them. This is the 
better arrangement. As the paintings retain consider¬ 
able oil, it is necessary, when the muffle is first charged, 
to heat gently, in order to volatilize or decompose this 
oil, leaving the muffle open. When the oil is driven off, 
the muffle is closed, and the fire increased. A greater 
or less intensity of heat is directed from one part to 
another of the muffle, by opening or closing the flues c, 
so as to cause the flames to pass over any point desired. 
The temperature suitable for burning is judged of by 
placing in the muffle pieces of glass painted with a little 
carmine. The heat should not be carried beyond the point 
at which the carmine is well developed. These pieces 
are fastened to iron wires, by which they may be passed 
in or out of the muffle through the tubes r, r. In this 
way the progress of the burning may be closely watched. 
When the carmine is well developed, the fire should be 
arrested, and the muffle allowed to cool. When the 
muffle has entirely cooled, the glass is withdrawn. If 


GLASS-STAINING. 


303 


any parts are defective, they may be retouched and put 
in the muffle a second time. Sufficient time should be 
allowed for the glass to become entirely cool, before 
withdrawing it. 


304 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


FISH OIL AND ROSIN OIL PAINTS. 

Various coarse paints, applicable to out-door work, 
and of great cheapness and durability, may be made 
with fish oil, according to the following processes:— 

To prepare the Oil. 

Into a cask which will contain about forty gallons, put 
thirty-two gallons of good common vinegar; add to this 
twelve pounds of litharge, and twelve pounds of white 
copperas in powder : bung up the vessel, and shake and 
roll it well twice a-day for a week, when it will be fit to 
put into a ton of whale, cod, or seal oil, (but the South¬ 
ern whale oil is to be preferred, on account of its good 
colour and little or no smell:) shake and mix all to¬ 
gether, when it may settle until the next day; then 
pour off the clear, which will be about seven-eighths of 
the whole. To clear this part, add twelve gallons of 
linseed oil, and two gallons of spirit of turpentine; shake 
them well together, and, after the whole has settled two 
or three days, it will be fit to grind white lead and all 
fine colours in; and, when ground, cannot be distin¬ 
guished from those ground in linseed oil, unless by the 
superiority of colour. 

If the oil be wanted only for coarse purposes, the lin¬ 
seed oil and oil ef turpentine may be added at the same 


FISH OIL FAINTS. 


305 


time that the prepared vinegar is put in; and, after 
being well shaken up, is fit for immediate use, without 
being suffered to settle. 

The residue or bottom, when settled by the addition 
of half its quantity of fresh lime-water, forms an excel¬ 
lent oil for mixing with all the coarse paints for preserv¬ 
ing outside work. 

All colours ground in the above oil, and used for in¬ 
side work, must be thinned with linseed oil and oil of 
turpentine. 


Gain by the above process. 

One ton of fish oil, or 252 gallons . . 1151 20 

82 gallons of vinegar, at 12 J cents per gallon . 4 00 

12 lbs. litharge, at 7 cts. per lb. . . 84 

12 lbs. white copperas, at 8 cts. ditto . . 96 

12 gallons of linseed oil, at 90 cts. per gallon 10 80 
2 gallons of spirit of turpentine, at 40 cts. 80 


$168 60 

252 gallons of fish oil 
12 ditto linseed oil 
2 ditto spirit of turpentine 
32 ditto vinegar 

298 gallons, at 90 cts. per gallon $268 20 
Deduct the expense . . 168 60 


20 


$99 60 




306 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Preparation and Cost of particular Colour *, 

I .—Subdued Green. 

Fresh lime-water, 6 gallons . . . . 8 06 

Road dirt, finely sifted, 112 pounds . 10 

Whiting, 112 ditto . . . • . 1 12 

Blue-black, 30 ditto . . . . 1 50 

Wet blue, 20 ditto . . . . . 4 00 

Residue of the oil, 3 gallons . . 1 50 

Yellow ochre in powder, 24 pounds . . 1 20 

$9 48 


This composition will weigh three hundred and sixty- 
eight pounds, which is a little more than two and a half 
cents per pound. To render the above paint fit for use, 
to every eight pounds add one quart of the incorporated 
oil, and one quart of linseed oil, and it will be found a 
paint with every requisite quality, as well of beauty as 
of durability and cheapness, and in this state of prepara¬ 
tion does not cost five cents per pound. 

The following is the mode of mixing the ingredients :— 
First pour six gallons of lime-water into a large tub, 
then throw in one hundred and twelve pounds of whit¬ 
ing ; stir it round well with a stirrer, let it settle for 
about an hour, and stir it again. The painter may then 
put in the one hundred and twelve pounds of road dirt, 
mix it well, and add the blue-black, after which the 




FISH OIL PAINTS. 


307 


yellow ochre; and when all is tolerably blended, take it 
out of the tub, and put it on a large board or platform, 
and, with a labourer’s shovel, mix and work it about as 
they do mortar. Now add the wet blue, which must bo 
previously ground in the incorporated oil, (as it will not 
grind or mix with any other oil.) When this is added 
to the mass, you may begin to thin it with the incorpo¬ 
rated oil, in the proportion of one quart to every eight 
pounds, and thon the linseed oil in the same proportion, 
and it is ready to be put into casks for use. 


II .—Lead Colour . 


Whiting, 112 pounds 

• • • $1 

12 

Blue-back, 5 ditto 

• • • 

25 

Lead ground in oil, 28 ditto 

2 

24 

Road dirt, 56 ditto 

• • • 

10 

Lime-water, 5 gallons 

• • • 

05 

Residue of the oil, 2£ ditto . 

. 1 

25 

Weighs 256 pounds 

Vi 

1 1 

01 


To the above add two gallons of the incorporated oil, 
and two gallons of linseed oil to thin it for use, and it 
will not exceed two cents and a quarter. 

The lime-water, whiting, road dirt, and blue-black 
must be first mixed together; then add the ground lead, 
first blending it with two gallons and a half of the pre¬ 
pared fish oil; after which, thin the whole with the two 
gallons of linseed oil and two gallons of incorporated oil, 






308 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Hi]d it will be fit for use. For garden doors and other 
work liable to be in constant use, a little spirits of tur¬ 
pentine may be added to the paint whilst laying on, 
which will have the desired effect. 

III .—Bright Green. 

112 pounds yellow ochre in powder, at 5 cents 


per pound . . . . . . $5 60 

168 ditto road dust ..... 25 

112 ditto wet blue, at 20 cts. per pound . 22 40 

10 ditto blue-black, at 5 cts. ditto . . 50 

6 gallons of lime-water .... 06 

4 ditto fish oil, prepared . . . . 2 40 

71 ditto incorporated oil . . . 4 28 

71 ditto linseed oil, at 90 cts. per gallon . 6 75 


592 pounds weight $42 24 


It will be seen that the bright green costs but about 
seven cents per pound, ready to lay on; and the inventor 
challenges any colourman or painter to produce a green 
equal to it for five times the price. 

After painting, the colour left in the pot may be 
covered with water to prevent it from skinning, and tho 
brushes, as usual, should be cleaned with the painting- 
knife and kept under water. 

A brighter green may be formed by omitting the blue 
black. 

A lighter green may be made by the addition of ten 
pounds of ground white lead. 






FISH OIL PAINTS. 


309 


A variety of greens may be obtained by varying the 
proportions of the blue and yellow. 

Observe that the wet blue must be ground with the 
incorporated oil, preparatory to its being mixed with the 
mass. 


IV .—Stone Colour . 


Lime-water, 4 gallons 

$ 04 

Whiting, 112 pounds . 

. 1 12 

White lead, ground, 28 pounds . 

2 24 

Road dust, 56 pounds . 

10 

Prepared fish oil, 2 gallons 

1 20 

Incorporated oil, 31 gallons . 

. 2 00 

Linseed oil, 3£ ditto .... 

3 15 

Weighs 293 pounds 

$9 85 

The above stone colour, fit for use, is 

not three and 

a half cents per pound 


Y.— Brown Red. 


Lime-water, 8 gallons 

oo 

o 

• 

Spanish brown, 112 pounds 

. 3 36 

Road dust, 224 pounds . . . 

40 

4 gallons of fish oil ... 

. 2 40 

4 ditto incorporated oil 

2 28 

4 dil to linseed oil . 

. 3 60 

Weighs 501 pounds 

$12 12 








310 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

This paint is scarcely two and a half cents per pound. 
The Spanish brown must be in powder. 

VI. — A good chocolate color is made by the addition 
of blue-black, in powder, or lamp-black, till the color 
is to the painter’s mind; and a lighter brown may be 
formed by adding ground white lead. By ground lead, 
is meant white lead ground in oil. 

VII. — Yellow is prepared with yellow ochre in pow¬ 
der, in the same proportion as Spanish brown. 

VIII. —Black is also prepared in the same propor¬ 
tion, using lamp-black or blue-black. 

Rosin-oil Paints. 

Rosin oil paints belong to the colors which contain 
a solid resin, a volatile oil and perhaps an addition of 
drying oil (linseed oil 05 varnish.) They are cheaper, 
but also less durable than oil paints, but are very use¬ 
ful for painting roofing paper, iron, zinc and brick 
work. The solid resin contained in the paint is colo¬ 
phony and the volatile solvent pinolin or rosin-spirit, 
which is obtained by subjecting colophony to dry dis¬ 
tillation. The pinolin, as well as the rosin oil which 
is frequently used, is obtained as follows: 

The still of a large distilling apparatus is filled three- 
quarters full with comminuted colophony. The man¬ 
hole is then closed and luted with clay to prevent the 
escape of vapors. A slow fire is then started under 
the still to liquefy the colophony, and when this is 
the case, the fire is increased to decompose the colo¬ 
phony. 

At the commencement of this decomposition water 
passes over first, and then a light oil—the pinolin or 
rosin spirit—which amounts to about 10 per cent, of 


ROSIN OIL PAINTS. 


311 


the colophony used. When this quantity has been 
obtained, distillation is interrupted and the receiver 
changed to catch the thick rosin oil. After this comes 
the thin rosin oil, each of these three products being 
caught separately. When the distillate passing over 
last shows a green fluorescence, the fire is removed 
from under the still and the residue remaining in the 
latter discharged. 

We have now four products, viz.: Pinolin (rosin- 
spirit) with water, thick rosin oil, thin rosin oil, and 
residue. Of these the pinolin and thin rosin oil are 
used for rosin oil paints, the thick rosin oil for print¬ 
ing ink, and the residue for shoemaker’s pitch and the 
manufacture of lampblack. 

The pinolin is separated from the water by allowing 
it to stand quietly for a few days, and is then distilled 
over lime. The thin rosin oil can be immediately 
used. 

Having thus prepared or acquired by purchase the 
raw materials for rosin-oil paints, the next step is the 
manufacture of the varnish, or rather the basis-mass 
which serves as the agglutinant for the pigments. 
The process is as follows: 

Melt in a capacious boiler 6 parts colophony and 10 
parts thin rosin-oil. When solution is complete add 
18 parts pinolin, strain the liquid through linen, and 
when cold mix it with the pigments. Or, treat in the 
same manner, colophony 10 parts, thin rosin oil 6, 
good linseed oil varnish 4, pinolin 10, and oil of tur¬ 
pentine 8. 

Receipts for Rosin-oil Paints . 

The figures in the following formulae refer to parts 
by weight. 


312 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER, 

White. White lead 25, barytes 10, rosin-oil basis- 
mass 20. 

Gray. White lead 25, barytes 10, rosin-oil basis- 
mass 20, lampblack 2. 

Brown. Umber 15, rosin-oil basis-mass 10. 

Green. Chrome-green 15, rosin-oil basis-mass 6. 

Yellow. French ochre 18, rosin-oil basis-mass 11. 

Yellow-brown. French ochre 20, Venetian red 4, 
umber 4, rosin-oil basis-mass 12. 

Tile red. Venetian red 20, barytes 10, rosin-oil 
basis-mass 16. 

English red. Venetian red 20, rosin-oil basis-mass 

13. 

Blue. Zinc white 20, ultramarine 10, rosin-oil basis- 
mass 16. 

All the above paints are ready for use, and cannot 
be otherwise furnished, since the determined quantity 
of oil of turpentine and pinolin have to be added warm 
to the agglutinant, and a subsequent addition might 
readily cause the decomposition of the paint. 

In the composition of the varnish or basis-mass, 
slight modifications may be made according to the 
price obtained for the finished article; thus an addi¬ 
tion of linseed oil, well-boiled and thick, much im¬ 
proves the paint, and, therefore, can be highly recom¬ 
mended, because the resin itself has little durability 
and the volatile constituents volatilize rapidly, so that 
a pure rosin-oil paint in a short time contains scarcely 
any agglutinant and is destroyed. Instead of rosin-oil, 
wood tar oil may also be used, the proper consistency 
of the paint being obtained by means of oil of turpen¬ 
tine or pinolin. 


MISCELLANEOUS MATERIALS. 


313 


MISCELLANEOUS MATERIALS 

Painter 1 & Cream. 

This is a preparation sometimes employed by painters 
when they are obliged to leave work unfinished for a 
length of time. They cover the parts already painted 
with it, which preserves the freshness of their colours, 
and can be easily removed when they return to their 
work. It is made as follows:— 

Take half an ounce of the best mastic, finely powdered, 
and dissolve it over a gentle fire,, in three ounces of very 
clear nut-oil. Pour the mixture into a marble mortar ; 
with two drams of pounded sugar of lead at the bottom 
of it. Stir this with a wooden pestle, and keep adding 
water in small quantities till the whole is of the appear¬ 
ance and thickness of cream, and refuses to admit more 
water, so as to mix freely. 

Rotten Stone. 

Rotten Stone is sometimes harsh and gritty; the best 
way of trying it is to take a little between the teeth, 
when the least portion of grit may be detected. Careful 
workmen will always wash it before they use it. This 
is effected by stirring the fine powder in a considerable 
quantity of water, then allowing it to remain at rest for 
a few seconds, and pouring the water into a gla/.ed 


314 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

earthen vessel; the powder which then precipitates 
will be perfectly fine and smooth; by washing the re¬ 
mainder, the whole of the finer parts may be sepa¬ 
rated from the grit. 

Glue and Isinglass. 

Good glue should swell when kept in colc( water for 
three or four days: it should be semi-transparent, of a 
brown color, and free from cloudiness. Before using 
it, it should be broken into small pieces, covered with 
cold water for some hours to soften it, then boiled till 
dissolved, and again allowed to congeal by cooling. 
The books in general recommend, as a size for gilding 
and bronzing, a solution of isinglass; but one of good 
clear common glue is much cheaper, and answers 
equally well. Isinglass, though a purer gelatine than 
glue, is not so easily dissolved. 

Common Size. 

Ordinary size is glue so much diluted with water 
that it does not harden in the mass, but preserves a 
jellified condition, and is thus sold in barrels. A bet¬ 
ter kind is however supplied, made into very thin 
square cakes like glue, which is principally used for 
sizing wood which has been stained, or for refined 
purposes. For distemper colors parchment size is the 
best, and is made as follows: Place a quantity of parch¬ 
ment cuttings in an iron kettle, cover them with water, 
and allow them to soak thoroughly. From 24 to 36 
hours will be required for this purpose, and should the 
water have been absorbed, more must be added. The 
whole is then to be boiled for about six hours, during 
which the scum which rises must be removed. It is 
afterwards to be strained through a cloth. Size pre- 


MISCELLANEOUS MATERIALS. 


315 


pared in the following manner will keep good for sev¬ 
eral weeks: Dissolve 3 or 4 ozs. of alum in boiling water 
and add the solution to a bucketful of the size. Boil 
and strain the size a second time and set in a cool 
place. 

Size from glove leather. Steep \ lb. of cuttings of 
white glove leather in water for about 12 hours; then 
add about 6 quarts of water, and boil the whole down 
to 1 quart. Strain and allow to cool. 


316 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


MISCELLANEOUS SUBJECTS 

AND 

USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


Though the whole of the following subjects and re¬ 
ceipts cannot be strictly said to relate to the trades of 
the Painter, Gilder, or Varnisher, yet most of them are 
so intimately connected with them, and also so useful to 
him, that the present Manual could not be considered 
complete without their being introduced. 

To increase the Strength of common Rectified Spirits of 
Wine , so as to make it equal to that of the best. 

Take a pint of the common spirits, and put it into a 
bottle which it will only fill about three-quarters full. 
Add to it half an ounce of pearlash or salt of tartar, 
powdered as much as it can be without occasioning any 
great loss of its heat. Shake the mixture frequently for 
about half an hour, before which time a considerable 
sediment, like phlegm, will be separated from the spirits, 
and will appear along with the undissolved pearlash or 



USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


317 


salt at the bottom of the bottle. Then pour the spirit 
off into another bottle, being careful to bring none of the 
sediment or salt along with it.* To the quantity just 
poured off add half an ounce of pearlash, powdered and 
heated as before, and repeat the same treatment. Con¬ 
tinue to do this as often as you find necessary till you 
perceive little or no sediment: when this is the case, an 
ounce of alum, powdered and made hot, but not burned, 
must be put into the spirits, and suffered to remain some 
hours, the bottle being frequently shaken during the 
time; after which the spirit, when poured off, will be 
found free from all impurities, and equal to the best 
rectified spirits of wine. 

To Silver by Heat. 

Dissolve an ounce of pure silver in aqua fortis, and 
precipitate it with common salt; to which add half a 
pound of sal-ammoniac, sandever, and white vitriol, and 
a quarter of an ounce of sublimate. 

Or dissolve an ounce of pure silver in aqua fortis, and 
precipitate it with common salt; and add, after washing, 
six ounces of common salt, three ounces each of sandever 
and white vitriol, and a quarter of an ounce of sublimate. 
These are to be ground into a paste, upon a fine stone 
with a muller; the substance to be silvered must be 
rubbed over with a sufficient quantity of the paste, and 


* For this purpose, you had better use what is called a separat¬ 
ing funnel, if you can procure it. 



318 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

exposed to a proper degree of heat. When the silver 
runs, it is taken from the fire and dipped into weak 
spirits of salts to clean it. 

To Tin Copper and Brass. 

Boil six pounds of cream of tartar, four gallons of 
water, and eight pounds of grain tin or tin shavings. 
After the materials have boiled a sufficient time, the 
substance to be tinned is put therein, and the boiling 
continued, when the tin is precipitated in its metallic 
form. 


To Tin Iron and, Copper Vessels. 

Iron which is to be tinned must be previously steeped 
in acid materials, such as sour whey, distiller’s wash, 
&c.; then scoured and dipped in melted tin, having been 
first rubbed over with a solution of sal-ammoniac. The 
surface of the tin is prevented from calcining by cover¬ 
ing it with a coat of fat. Copper vessels must be well 
cleansed ; and then a sufficient quantity of tin with sal- 
ammoniac is put therein, and brought into fusion, and 
the copper vessel moved about. A little resin is some¬ 
times added. The sal-ammoniac prevents the copper 
from scaling, and causes the tin to be fixed wherever it 
touches. Lately, zinc has been proposed for lining ves¬ 
sels instead of tin, to avoid the ill consequences which 
have been unjustly apprehended. 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


319 


To'paint Sail-Cloth , so as to make it Pliant , .Durable* 

and Water-proof. 

Grind ninety-six pounds of English ochre with boiled 
oil, and add to it sixteen pounds of black paint. Dis- 
soWe a pound of yellow soap in one pail of water on the 
tire, and mix it while hot with the paint. Lay this 
composition, without wetting it, upon the canvas, as stiff 
as can conveniently be done with the brush, so as to 
form a smooth surface; the next day, or the day after, 
(if the latter, so much the better,) lay on a second coat 
of ochre and black, with a very little, if any, soap; allow 
this coat a day to dry, and then finish the canvas with 
black paint. 

To make Oil-Cloth. 

The manner of making oil-cloth, or, as the vulgar 
sometimes term it, oil-skin , was at one period a mys¬ 
tery. The process is now well understood, and is equally 
simple and useful. 

Dissolve some good resin or gum-lac over the fire in 
drying linseed oil, till the resin is dissolved, and the oil 
brought to the thickness of a balsam. If this be spread 
upon canvas, or any other linen cloth, so as fully to 
drench and entirely to glaze it over, the cloth, if then 
suffered to dry thoroughly, will be quite impenetrable 
to wet of every description * 


* This preparation will likewise be found both useful and econo¬ 
mical in securing timber from the effects of wet. 



320 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

This varnish may either be worked by itself or with 
some colour added to it: as verdigris for a green ; umber 
for a hair colour* white lead and lamp-black for a gray; 
indigo and white for a light blue, &c. To give the 
colour, you have only to grind it with the last coat of 
varnish you lay on. You must be as careful as possible 
to lay on the varnish equally in all parts. 

A better method, however, of preparing oil-cloth is 
first to cover the cloth or canvas with a liquid paste, 
made with drying oil in the following manner: Take 
Spanish white or tobacco-pipe clay which has been com¬ 
pletely cleaned by washing and sifting it from all impu¬ 
rities, and mix it up with boiled oil, to which a drying 
quality has been given by adding a dose of litharge 
one-fourth the weight of the oil. This mixture, being 
brought to the consistence of thin paste, is spread over 
the cloth or canvas by means of an iron spatula equal 
in length to the breadth of the cloth. When the first 
coating is dry, a second is applied. The unevennesses 
occasioned by the coarseness of the cloth or the unequal 
application of the paste are smoothed down with pumice- 
stone reduced to powder, and rubbed over the cloth with 
a bit of soft serge or cork dipped in water. When the 
last coating is dry, the cloth must be well washed in 
water to clean it; and, after it is dried, a varnish com¬ 
posed of gum-lac dissolved in linseed oil boiled with tur¬ 
pentine is applied to it, and the process is complete. 
The colour of the varnished cloth thus produced is yel¬ 
low ; but different tints can be given to it in the manner 
already pointed out. 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


321 


An improved description of this article, intended foi 
figured and printed varnished cloths, is obtained by using 
a finer paste, and cloth of a more delicate texture. 

To prepare Varnished Silk. 

Varnished silk, often employed for umbrellas, cover¬ 
ing to hats, &c., being impenetrable to wet, is prepared, 
and the operation performed, in the same manner as I 
have described in the second method of preparing oil¬ 
cloth, but with a different kind of varnish or paste. 

The paste used for silk is composed of linseed oil 
boiled with a fourth part of litharge ; tobacco-pipe clay, 
dried and sifted, sixteen parts; litharge, ground on por¬ 
phyry or very fine marble, and likewise dried and sifted, 
three parts; lamp-black one part. After the washing 
of the silk, fat copal varnish is applied instead of that 
used for oil-cloth. 

To paint Cloth, Cambric , Sarcenet , &c., so as to render 

them Transparent. 

Grind to a fine powder three pounds of clear white 
resin, and put it into two pounds of good nut oil, to 
which a strong drying quality has been given; set the 
mixture over a moderate fire, and keep stirring it till 
all the resin is dissolved; then put in two pounds of 
the best Venice turpentine, and keep stirring the whole 
well together; and, if the cloth or cambric be thorough¬ 
ly varnished on both sides with this mixture, it will be 
quite transparent. 

21 


322 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

1 should remark that in this operation, as well as in 
the preparation of oil-cloths and varnished silks, the 
surfaces upon which the varnish or paste is to be applied 
must be stretched tight, and made fast during the ap¬ 
plication. 

This mode of rendering cloth, &c. transparent is ex¬ 
cellently adapted for window-blinds. The varnish wilJ 
likewise admit of any design in oil colours being exe¬ 
cuted upon it as a transparency. 


To thicken Linen Cloths for Screens. 

Grind whiting with flowers of zinc, and add a little 
honey to it; then take a soft brush, and lay it upon the 
cloth, repeating the operation two or three times, and 
giving it time to dry between the different coatings. 
For the last coat, smooth it over with linseed oil nearly 
boiling, and mixed with a small quantity of the litharge 
of gold—the better to enable the cloth to stand the 
weather. 


Printers’ Ink. 

Printers’ ink is a real black paint, composed of lamp¬ 
black, and linseed oil which has undergone a degree of 
heat superior to that of any of the common drying oils. 

The manner of preparing it is extremely simple. Boil 
linseed oil in a large iron pot for eight hours, adding to 
it bits of toasted bread, for the purpose of absorbing 
the water contained in the oil. Let it rest till the fol¬ 
lowing morning, and then expose it to the same degree 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


323 


of heat for eight hours more, or till it has acquired the 
consistence required; then add lamp-black worked up 
with a mixture of oil of turpentine and turpentine. 

The consistence depends on the degree of heat gi'w 
to the oil, and the quantity of lamp-black mixed 
it ; and this consistence is regulated by the strep/ 
the paper foi which the ink is intended. „ r 

The preparation of printers’ ink should t£-/ , 

, v • , . ., , i rr . £lrom the 

the open air, to prevent the bad enects an£/ , 

vapour of the burnt oil, and, in particu 1 ’ ° 

against accidents by fire. 


Sticking , or Court * xs * er ' 

This plaster is well known * ts g ene1 ^ use 
. , r T , • Merely a kind of varnished 

its healing properties. It is J 

silk, and its manufacture hr er y ciis y- 

Bruise a sufficient <,-“«<* of isi "S laas - and ,‘ “ 
soak in a little warm for four-arid-twenty hours: 

expose it to heat ov/‘ he fire tiU the g raater P art 0 

the water is dissiC pd > and SU PP^ lts P la “ b ? P™° 
spirits of wine, • will combine with the isinglass. 

Strain the wVle through a piece of open men ta ing 
care that tb consistence of the mixture shall be such 
that, wh/cool, it may form a trembling jelly. 

Extend the piece of black silk, of which you propose 
making your plaster, on a wooden frame, and fix it m 
>Aat position by means of tacks or pack-thread. Then 
apply the isinglass (after it has been rendered liquid by 
* gentle heat) to the silk with a brush of fine hair, 


324 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


(badger’s is the best.) As soon as this first coating is 
dried, which will not be long, apply a second ; and af¬ 
terwards, if you wish the article to be very superior, a 
bird. When the whole is dry, cover it with two or 


ee coatings of the balsam of Peru. 

Ms is the genuine court plaster. It is pliable, and 
DeVt Meaks, which is far from being the case with many 
of the articles which are sold under that name- 

Indeed, . commo< iity is very frequently adulterated. 
A kind ot a ver y thick and brittle cover¬ 

ing, is often ^ f Qr The manufacturers of this, 
instead of isin L ^ use com mon glue, which is much 
cheaper; and co whole with spirit varnish, in¬ 
stead of balsam erf This plaster cracks, and has 

none of the balsamic py which the genuine court 
plaster is distinguished. ^ nother me thod of detecting 
the adulteration is to mol , n w ; t p y 0ur tongue on 
the side opposite to that whic. varn {shed ; and, if the 
plaster be genuine, it will aq ere exceedingly well. 
The adulterated plaster is too hai< f or this : it will not 
stick, unless you moisten it on the irn i s hed side. 


To imitate Tortoise-shell with H^n. 

Mix up an equal quantity of quicklime an? re d lead 
with strong soap-lees; lay it on the horn with a small 
brush, in imitation of the mottle of tortoise-shell; when 
it is dry, repeat it two or three times. 

Or, grind an ounce of litharge and half an ounce of 
quicklime together, with a sufficient quantity of liquid 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


325 


salt of tartar to make it of the consistence of paint. Put 
it on the horn with a brush, in imitation of tortoise¬ 
shell, and in three or four hours it will have produce/ 1 
the desired effect; it may then be washed off with elf 
water; if not deep enough, it may be repeated. Q 

There is still another mode of effecting this im; 

6 . / pea, 

Take a piece of lunar caustic, about the size o' 

grind it with water on a stone, and mix with 
b ’ x>per con- 

cient portion of gum-arabic to make it of ^ - m *_ 

sistence, then apply it with a brush to thj j ea( j 

tation of the veins of tortoise-shell. A ., i A J 

o-ive it a body, 

or some other powder, mixed with it = be horn quite 
is of advantage. It will then s* ^ quality In 
through, without hurting its tex/' f “ t]ie bora 

this case, however, you must h foj . sQme bours 

is sufficiently stained, to let J/ and lisbing it . 

in plain water, previous to 

/lass from the Rays of the Sun. 

A Varmsh to preserve J 

/. of gum-tragacanth to fine powder, 
Reduce a quanta ® , a • n f 

, , , r , /for twenty-four houis m white ot 

n l /fa\ then rub it gently on the glass with 
eggs well bea yr > 

a brush. 

To imitate Rosewood. 

mAhalf a pound of logwood, boil it with three pints 
,o4ater till it is of a very dark red, to which add abou 
half an ounce of salt of tartar; and, when boiling hot, 
stain vour wood with two or three coats, taking care 


326 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


take it is nearly dry between each ; then with a stiff flat 
brush, such as you use for graining, make streaks with a 
very deep black stain, which, if carefully executed, will 
be very near the appearance of dark rosewood. 

The following is another method : Stain your wood 
a over with a black stain, and when dry, with a brush 
veiL Ve ’ *he brightening liquid, form red 

produ ^ m ^ a ^ on the g ra i n °f rosewood; which will 
A ha^ en we ^ mana g e d ? a beautiful effect, 
made by t ^ rus ^ ^ or P ur P ose °f veining may be 

ing and cut? a ^ rus ^’ su °h as y ou use ^ or varil k s h* 
kino- the ed e s ^ ar P P 0 ^ 11 ^ °ff the hairs, and ma- 

and there, you by cuttin S ou t a f ew hair s hel 'e 

have a tool which, without any 
trouble, will imitate . ; J 

0 gram with great accuracy. 

To Imitate y7 7 n 7 
ftcfc Kosewood. 

The work must be ground, ,, , , . , . , 

cnmo li ., black; after which take 

some red lead well ground, an, • \ , , 

rected, which lay on with a flat s-r y f 

Of the streaks in the wood; thenV™ 11 ’ ^ 

of lake, ground fine, and mil it with br* ^ 

carefully observing not to have more^'" TT ’ 

will just tinge the varnish; but shou.d^Cn « 

rial, to be still too red, you may easily assist f t P wit ’ h a 

httle umber, ground very fine, or a small t^o 

\andyke-bro W n, which is better; with which passer 

tbe whole of the work intended to imitate black rose- 

wood, and it will have the desired effect: indeed, if well 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


327 


done, when it is varnished and polished, it will scarcely 
be known from rosewood. 

A fine Black Varnish for Coaches and Iron work. 

Take two ounces of bitumen of Palestine, two ounces 
of resin, and twelve ounces of umber; melt them sepa¬ 
rately, and afterwards mix them together over a moderate 
fire. Then pour upon them, while on the fire, six ounces 
of clear boiled linseed oil, and keep stirring the whole 
from time to time; take it ofif the fire, and, when pretty 
cool, pour in twelve ounces of the essence of turpentine. 

A Varnish to Imitate the Chinese. 

Put four ounces of powdered gum-lac, with a piece of 
camphor about the size of a hazlenut into a strong bottle, 
with a pound of good spirits of wine. Shake the bottle 
from time to time, and set it over some hot embers to 
mix for twenty-four hours, if it be in winter; in sum¬ 
mer time, you may expose it to the sun. Pass the whole 
through a fine cloth, and throw away what remains upon 
it. Let it settle for twenty-four hours, and you will find 
a clear part in the upper part of the bottle, which you 
must separate gently, and put into another vial; and 
the remains will serve for the first layers or coatings. 

To clean Silver Furniture . 

Lay the furniture piece by piece upon a charcoal 
fire; and when they are just red, take them ofif and boil 


328 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

them in tartar and water, and your silver will have tho 
same beauty as when first made. 

To colour the Backs of Chimneys with Lead Ore. 

Clean them with a very strong brush, and carefully 
rub off fhe dust and rust; pound about a quarter of a 
pound of lead ore into a fine powder, and put it into a 
vessel with half a pint of vinegar; then apply it to the 
back of the chimney with a brush. When it is made 
black with this liquid, take a dry brush, dip it in the 
same powder without vinegar, then dry and rub it with 
this brush, till it becomes as shining as glass. 

To clean Marble , Sienna , Jasper , Porphyry , See. 

Mix up a quantity of the strongest soapdees with 
quicklime, to the consistence of milk, and lay it on the 
stone, &c., for twenty-four hours; clean it afterwards 
with soap and water, and it will appear as new. 

This may be improved by rubbing or polishing it 
afterwards with fine putty powder and olive oil. 

A white for inside Painting , which , in about four hours 
dries and leaves no smell. 

Take one gallon of spirits of turpentine and two 
pounds of frankincense; let them simmer over a clear 
fire till dissolved, then strain and bottle it. Add one 
quart of this mixture to a gallon of bleached linseed 
oil, shake them well together, and bottle them likewise. 
Grind any quantity of white lead very fine with spirits 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


329 


of turpentine, then add a sufficient quantity of the last 
mixture to it till you find it fit for laying on. If it 
grows thick in working, it must be thinned with spirit 
of turpentine: it gives a flat or dead white. 

To take Ink Spots out of Mahogany. 

Apply spirits of salt with a rag, until the spot disap¬ 
pears, and immediately wash with clear water. Or, to 
half a pint of soft water put an ounce of oxalic acid, and 
half an ounce of butter of antimony ; shake it well, and 
when dissolved it will be very useful for extracting stains 
out of mahogany, as well as ink, if not of too long stand¬ 
ing. 


To make Paste for Furniture. 

Scrape four ounces of beeswax into a pot or basin; 
then add as much spirits of turpentine as will moisten it 
through ; at the same time, pound a quarter of an ounce 
of resin and add to it: when it is dissolved to the con¬ 
sistence of paste, add as much Indian red as will bring 
it to a deep mahogany colour: stir it up, and it is fit 
for use. 

Another sort of paste may be made as follows :— 

Scrape four ounces of beeswax as before; then take 
a pint of spirits of turpentine in a clean glazed pipkin, 
to which add an ounce of alkanet root; cover it close, and 
put it over a slow fire, attending it carefully, that it may 
not boil or catch fire; and when you perceive the colour 
to be drawn from the root, by the liquid being of a deep 


330 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

red, add as much of it to the wax as will moisten it 
through; at the same time, add a quarter of an ounce of 
powdered resin, cover it close, and let it stand six hours, 
and it will be fit for use. 

To make Oil for Furniture. 

Take linseed oil; put it in a glazed pipkin, with as 
much alkanet root as it will cover; let it boil gently, and 
you will find it become of a strong red colour; let it 
cool, and it will be fit for use. Or, boil together cold 
drawn linseed oil and as much alkanet as it will cover, 
and to every quart of oil add two ounces of the best rose 
pink; when all the colour is extracted, strain it off, and 
for every quart add a gill of spirits of turpentine ; it will 
be a very superior composition for soft and light maho¬ 
gany- 


To brown Gun Barrels. 

Rub the barrel, after it is finished, with aqua-fortis, or 
spirit of salt diluted with water. Lay it by for a week, 
till a complete coat is formed. Then apply a little oil, 
and, after rubbing the surface dry, polish it with a hard 
brush and a little beeswax. 

To clean Pictures. 

Having taken the picture out of its frame, take a 
clean towel, and making it quite wet, lay it on the face 
of your picture, sprinkling it from time to time with clear 
soft water: let it remain wet for two or three days; trike 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


331 


the cloth off, and renew it with a fresh one; after wip¬ 
ing your picture with a clean wet sponge, repeat the 
process till you find all the dirt soaked out of your pic* 
ture ; then wash it well with a soft sponge, and let it 
get quite dry; rub it with some clear nut or linseed oil, 
and it will look as well as when freshly done. 

Another Method. 

Put into two quarts of strong lye a quarter of a 
pound of Castile soap rasped very fine, with about a pint 
of spirits of wine; let them simmer on the fire for half 
an hour, then strain them through a cloth; apply it 
with a brush to the picture, wipe it off with a sponge, 
and apply it a second time, which will effectually remove 
all dirt; then, with a little nut oil warmed, rub the pic¬ 
ture, and let it dry; this will make it look as bright as 
when it came out of the artist’s hands. 

Varnish for Clock Faces , <Scc. 

Take of spirits of wine one pint; divide it into four 
parts; mix one part with half an ounce of gum mastic, 
in a bottle by itself; one part of spirits and half an 
ounce of gum sandrac in another bottle; and one part of 
spirits and half an ounce of the whitest part of gum ben¬ 
jamin; mix and temper them to your mind; if too thick, 
add spirits; if too thin, some mastic; if too soft, some 
sandrac or benjamin. When you use it, warm the sil¬ 
vered plate before the fire, and with a flat camel-hair pen¬ 
cil stroke it over till no white streaks appear; which will 
preserve the silvering for many years. 


332 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


Varnish for Balloons. 

Take some linseed oil, rendered drying by boiling it 
with two ounces of sugar of lead and three ounces of 
litharge for every pint of oil till they are dissolved, 
which may be in half an hour. Then put a pound of 
birdlime and half a pint of the drying oil into an iron oi 
copper vessel, whose capacity should equal about a gal¬ 
lon, and let it boil very gently over a slow charcoal fire, 
till the birdlime ceases to crackle, which will be in about 
half or three-quarters of an hour; then pour upon it two 
pints and a half more of the drying oil, and let it boil 
about an hour longer, stirring it frequently with an iron 
or wooden spatula. As the varnish, whilst boiling, and 
especially when nearly ready, swells very much, care 
should be taken to remove, in those cases, the pot from 
the fire, and to replace" it when the varnish subsides; 
otherwise, it will boil over. Whilst the stuff is boiling, 
the operator should occasionally examine whether it has 
boiled enough, which may be known by observing whe¬ 
ther, when rubbed between two knives, which are then 
to be separated from one another, the varnish forms 
threads between them, as it must then be removed from 
the fire. When nearly cool, add about an equal quantity 
of oil of turpentine. In using the varnish, the stuff 
must be stretched, and the varnish applied lukewarm. 
In twenty-four hours, it will dry. 

As the elastic resin, known by the name of Indian 
rubber, has been much extolled for a varnish for bal- 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


333 


loons, the following method of making it, as practised 
by M. Blanchard, may not prove unacceptable : Dis¬ 
solve elastic resin cut small in five times its weight of 
rectified essential oil of turpentine, by keeping them 
some days together. Then boil one ounce of this solu¬ 
tion in eight ounces of drying linseed oil for a few 
minutes ; strain the solution, and use it warm. 


Jlugoulin's Method of Preparing Oil-paints. 


Prepare in a glass or earthenware vessel a thin 
homogeneous paste of water and a quantity of one of 
the following substances reduced to fine powder. 


Parts by 
weight. 

For White oxide of zinc . . . 1000 
“ Gray oxide of zinc .... 1000 


“ White lead.1000 

“ Red lead.1000 

“ Lampblack.1000 


Parts by 
weight. Water. 

300 to 400 
150 to 180 
150 to 180 
80 to 160 
about 1000 


To this paste add the quantity of linseed oil required 
for the preparation of a paint of proper consistence and 
stir with a spatula, spoon or knife for a few minutes, 
whereby the oil combines with the coloring matter. 
Decant off the supernatant perfectly clear water, and 
knead the remaining mass to remove all the water. 
Finally a viscid mass remains, which is diluted with 
sufficient oil to allow of its being worked with the 
brush. This paint, as proved by the separation of the 
water, is an actual combination and also has the ap¬ 
pearance of such. If other mineral substances, for in¬ 
stance, ocher, mineral colors, copper compounds, etc., 
are treated in the manner above described, a separa¬ 
tion of water would not take place, and no matter how 
long the stirring and kneading of the mass might be 





334 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


continued, the result would always be a mixture of the 
three substances—pigment, water and oil. A com¬ 
bination is only formed with the use of linseed oil and 
white lead, white and gray oxide of zinc, chrome yel¬ 
low or lampblack, which explains the preference given 
to these pigments, their efficacy as a protective coat 
for wood and metal having been practically proved. 

The process for the preparation of such oil-paints on 
a larger as well as a smaller scale is as follows: The 
pigment—oxide of zinc, white lead, red lead, or chrome 
yellow—is reduced to a powder and worked with 
water to a dough by means of a spatula or similar tool. 
This dough is then reduced by the addition of more 
water to a thin paste or milk, which is passed through 
a silk sieve. The quantity of water used makes no 
difference; it may be so considerable, that the paste 
or milk is rendered quite fluid and passes rapidly 
through the sieve. Upon the latter remains only a 
very small quantity—about 4 per cent, of the pigment 
—which is used for the next operation, as well as ail 
foreign admixtures, so that the paint is entirely freed 
from them, an advantage which is not attained by 
grinding in a mill or upon a grind-slab with the muller. 

The paste or milk thus produced is allowed to settle, 
which may require several hours or even a few days. 
The supernatant water is then decanted off, the re¬ 
quisite amount of oil added, and the whole stirred for 
several minutes. The dough balls together to a 
crummy mass and is thoroughly kneaded to remove all 
the remaining water. Immediately before use, the 
paste is mixed with the necessary quantity of oil and 
siccative, and then forms an oil-paint of homogeneous 
grain and great fineness. 

This new process has been tested in the preparation 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


335 


of oil-paints on a quite extensive scale, and always 
yielded good results. As regards the grey oxide of 
zinc, the paste formed from it should be dried, pulver¬ 
ized and in a dry state passed through a sieve, since 
by continued contact with water it would be com¬ 
pletely oxidized and form a solid mass, soluble with 
difficulty in oil. Lampblack is rather difficult to 
mix with water. For this purpose moisten it first 
with water containing 10 per cent, of alcohol, and mix 
with a trowel until the mixture has acquired the 
moisture of fresh snuff. In this state the lampblack 
can be readily divided in water. It is then allowed to 
settle, and after decanting of! the supernatant water, 
is mixed with the requisite quantity of oil. 

Balmain''s Luminous Paint. 

A luminous paint which contains no phosporus is 
chemically a combination of an alkaline earth with 
sulphur, oxygen and some water. However, its prop¬ 
erty of emitting light is dependent not only on its 
chemical composition and proper combination, but 
also on a special molecular condition. Hence a chemi¬ 
cal analysis of the paint cannot by itself yield accurate 
results, and for this reason it has thus far been impos¬ 
sible to imitate Balmain’s luminous paint, which is 
now manufactured by an English company. 

Balmain’s luminous paint is furnished in the form 
of an oil paint and of a water-color. It possesses the 
remarkable property of absorbing daylight or another 
strong light, and re-emitting it in the dark. More¬ 
over, it is so extraordinarily sensitive to light that an 
inductive spark suffices to render it luminous in the 
dark. The pov- er of emitting light depends, of course, 
on the strength of the light conveyed to the paint and 


330 PAINTER, GIEDER, AND VARNISHER. 

the duration of its action, as well as on the quantity of 
paint applied. The thicker the coat of paint and the 
longer and the more intensely the light has acted upon 
it, the stronger and more durable will be the light 
emitted by the painted article. When suddenly 
brought from the light into darkness, the article emits 
a violet light, passing later on into white, and gradu¬ 
ally yields weaker and weaker waves of light until it 
can finally be perceived only by the perfectly rested 
eye. On being returned to the light, the luminous 
paint immediately re-absorbs light, and to render an 
article coated with the paint luminous during the 
longest winter night, an exposure of it to the light 
during the day is sufficient. The absorption and 
emission of light are, of course, prevented by the 
gradual accumulation of dirt upon the surface. Heat 
exerts a peculiar action upon the luminous surface, it 
effecting a stronger emission of light, i. e., the light 
which otherwise is yielded slowly, is emitted more or 
less rapidly according to the degree of heating, and, of 
course, does not last so long. 

The luminosity is destroyed by hydrochloric and 
nitric acids, as well as by varnishes or paints contain¬ 
ing lead. Hence for thinning and coating the lumi¬ 
nous paint a special varnish is employed, as well as a 
suitable black paint for letters to be painted on it. 

Articles already provided with a coat of ordinary 
oil paint have to be painted, before applying the 
luminous paint, with a neutral ground paint. 
To prevent rusting, iron has also to be provided 
with a coat of neutral ground paint. The latter 
may be recommended on account of its cheapness, and 
also as a first coat for porous or rough stones, etc., the 
uneveness being thereby somewhat remedied, and the 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


.337 


effect of the luminous paint considerably increased. 
Three coats of luminous paint are sufficient for any 
article, and are as durable as the best oil paint, espec¬ 
ially when provided with a coat of prepared varnish. 
One pound of luminous oil paint suffices for giving 
three coats to a surface of 12 square feet. 

The luminous water-color has in general the same 
properties as the luminous oil-paint, only like all other 
water-colors, it should not be used for out-door pur¬ 
poses. It is furnished in the form of a dry powder 
which is dissolved, with constant stirring, in luke¬ 
warm water (about 1\ quarts of water for 10 lbs. of 
paint), the mixture thus obtained sufficing for giving 
three coats to a surface of 70 square feet. Articles of 
new unpainted wood, plaster of paris, paste-board, etc., 
are painted, before laying on the luminous paint, with 
a solution of a prepared chemically pure gelatine (1 
part of gelatine to 12 of water). The luminous paints 
should only be laid oil with new, perfectly clean 
brushes, and should be thoroughly shaken and stirred 
before and during the work. One coat must be thor¬ 
oughly dry before applying the next. 

Although a coat of luminous paint laid on in ac¬ 
cordance with the directions given above yields per¬ 
fectly satisfactory results, it must be remembered that 
the luminosity is apparent only in perfect darkness, 
and hence such a coat of paint would be entirely use¬ 
less in half-dark places or in localities accessible to ar¬ 
tificial light. Thus it would be of no use to apply the 
paint to street signs in lighted cities, while on the other 
hand a guide-post on a public road, the arms of which 
are painted with luminous paint and provided with 
directions, would in every way answer the intended 
purpose. 

22 


338 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Many experiments made in unsuitable places have 
led to wrong ideas in regard to luminous paints. It 
must be remembered that the paint itself is not lumin¬ 
ous, but simply possesses the property of absorbing 
light and emitting it in the dark. 

When entering a dark room in which highly in¬ 
flammable articles are stored, it is advisable, in order 
to avoid all danger, to use as a lantern large plates 
painted with luminous paint. 

As the luminous paint is effective also under water, 
divers, whose dresses and tools have been painted with 
it, can work at considerable depth by the light emitted 
from it, and, according to the statements of Mr. P. 
Hedger, manager of the Southampton Dock Co., 
divers equipped in this manner, who were working 
around a wreck lying in 26 feet of water, could dis¬ 
tinctly see the rivets and bolts of the vessel. 

It is not necessary to further enumerate the many 
public and private purposes for which luminous paint 
may be used. It is also prepared in the form of a 
wax-mass and in this state is used by jewelers, manu¬ 
facturers of glass ornaments, etc., and for the prepara¬ 
tion of artificial fish-bait. 

The preparation of luminous paint is as follows: 
Oyster-shells cleaned with warm water are placed in 
the fire for half an hour, then taken out and allowed 
to cool. They are next reduced to a fine powder and 
the worthless gray portions removed. The powder is 
packed with alternate layers of sulphur in a crucible. 
The lid is then placed upon the latter and luted with 
a cement made by stirring sand with beer to a thick 
paste. The crucible is heated to a red heat for one 
hour, when its contents will be white. The powder 
is carefully sifted and mixed with gum water to the 
consistency of a paint. 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


. 839 


An invention patented by Gustav Schatte, of Dres¬ 
den, has for its object to produce durable white or col¬ 
ored paints containing a luminous substance, which 
causes them to shine in the dark, without changing 
or neutralizing in daylight the tint of the coloring 
substance or substances contained in such paints. 

For this purpose Zanzibar or Kauri copal is melted 
over a wood tire ; 15 parts of the melt are dissolved in 
60 parts of French oil of turpentine, the solution is 
filtered and mixed with 25 parts of pure linseed oil 
previously heated and then slightly cooled off. The 
varnish thus obtained is carefully worked into lumin¬ 
ous paint in a grinding mill, according to one of the 
processes to be given later on. Iron rolls should be 
avoided, as particles of iron, which are liable to be de¬ 
tached, would destroy the luminosity of the paint. 

Commercial varnish nearly always contains manga¬ 
nese or lead, and cannot be used, as it would destroy 
the luminosity of the paint. 

Pure white luminous paint is prepared as follows: 
Mix 40 parts of the varnish above described with 6 
parts of prepared barium sulphate, 6 parts of prepared 
carbonate of lime, 12 parts of prepared white zinc sul¬ 
phide, and 86 parts of luminous calcium-sulphide, in a 
suitable vessel to an emulsion, and grind the mixture 
fine in a color mill. 

Reel luminous paint. Mix 50 parts of the varnish 
above described with 8 parts of prepared barium sul¬ 
phate, 2 parts of prepared madder lake, 6 parts of pre¬ 
pared red orpiment, and 34 parts of luminous calcium 
sulphide. Preparation the same as for white paint. 

Orange luminous paint. Mix 46 parts of the varnish 
above described with 17£ parts of prepared barium 
sulphate, 1 part of Indian yellow, 1£ parts of prepared 


340 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

madder-lake, and 34 parts of luminous calcium sul¬ 
phide. Preparation as above. 

Yellow luminous paint. Mix 48 parts of the varnish 
above described with 10 parts of prepared barium sul¬ 
phate, 8 parts of barium chromate, and 34 parts of 
luminous calcium sulphide. Preparation as above. 

Green luminous paint. Mix 48 parts of the varnish 
above described with 10 parts of prepared barium sul¬ 
phate, 8 parts of chrome green and 34 parts of lumi¬ 
nous calcium sulphide. Preparation as above. 

Blue luminous paint. Mix 42 parts of the varnish 
above described with 10.2 parts of prepared barium 
sulphate, 6.4 parts of ultramarine, 5.4 parts of cobalt 
blue, and 36 parts of luminous calcium sulphide. Pre¬ 
paration as above. 

Violet luminous paint. Mix 42 parts of the varnish 
above described with 10.2 parts of prepared barium sul¬ 
phate, 2.8 parts of ultramarine violet, 9 parts of cobalt- 
ous arsenate, and 36 parts of luminous calcium sul¬ 
phide. Preparation as above. 

Gray luminous paint. Mix 45 parts of the varnish 
above described with 6 parts of prepared barium sul¬ 
phate, 9 parts of prepared calcium carbonate, \ part of 
ultramarine, £ part of gray zinc sulphide and 36 parts 
of luminous calcium sulphide. Preparation as above. 

Yellowish brown luminous paint. Mix 48 parts of 
the varnish above described with 10 parts of prepared 
barium sulphate, 8 parts of yellow orpiment, and 34 
parts of luminous calcium sulphide. Preparation as 
above. 

Luminous paints for art purposes are prepared by sub¬ 
stituting in the mixtures above given the same quan¬ 
tity of pure poppy seed oil for the varnish, and grind¬ 
ing the product with special care. 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


341 


All the luminous paints given above may be used 
for colored papers and other purposes by omitting 
the varnish and grinding the color mixtures with 
water and an agglutinate free from acid. Luminous 
paints for painting on hollow glass ware and similar 
art icles may be prepared by adding instead of the var¬ 
nish 10 per cent, of Japanese wax and one-fourth part 
of the latter of olive oil. 

Paint for Vessels, Submarine Works, etc. 

Concentrated solution of potash 160 parts by weight, 
grape sugar 80 ; add a solution of 320 parts by weight 
of sulphate of copper. When this solution is heated, a 
precipitate of hydrated oxide of copper is formed ; this 
is filtered and carefully dried and mixed with 6} parts 
by weight of 75 per cent, carbolic acid. Heat the mass, 
and add sufficient crude linseed oil to make it the con¬ 
sistency of thick paint. For use reduce with linseed 
oil. This paint is claimed to be poisonous to animal 
and vegetable bodies depositing themselves on vessels 
which have been painted with it. 

Imitation Mahogany. 

French artisans adopt the following treatment for 
representing mahogany: The surface having been 
planed and rendered perfectly smooth, the wood is 
rubbed with dilute nitric acid. Afterwards a filtered 
mixture of 14 ozs. of dragon’s blood dissolved in 1 pint 
of spirits of wine is added to one-third that quantity of 
carbonate of soda. This thin liquid is brushed with a 
soft brush over the wood, the operation being repeated 
at short intervals until the wood assumes the external 
appearance of mahogany with a mirror-like polish on 
the surface. Should this brilliancy decline, it may be 


34 2 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

restored by rubbing with a little cold drawn linseed 
oil. 

Black Enamel for Wood. 

The following receipt may be of value to painters : 
Prime the wood with linseed oil, oil of turpentine and 
white lead ; then give it two or three coats of black, 
mixed with copal varnish and turpentine. Rub it 
down with pumice stone and water, and finally var¬ 
nish with copal. Again rub down and polish with oil 
and rotten stone to obtain perfect smoothness. 

Driers. 

Driers are a class of bodies added to oil for the pur¬ 
pose of causing it to dry more quickly than it would 
otherwise do. The bodies generally used for this pur¬ 
pose are salts of iron, lead, manganese, and zinc. 

The following list comprises all the compounds used 
as driers in paints and varnishes: Red lead, litharge, 
lead acetate, lead borate, manganese oxide, manganese 
sulphate, manganese borate, manganese oxalate, zinc 
oxide, zinc sulphate, and ferrous sulphate. 

Besides the simple driers mentioned above, a variety 
of compound driers, usually composed of mixtures of 
single driers in various proportions, or with some lin¬ 
seed oil or boiled oil, are made. A few receipts for 
the production of those principally in use will be 
given. 

Patent driers. Mix 15 parts by weight of dried zinc 
sulphate, 4 ol lead acetate and 7 of litharge, with 4 of 
boiled oil, and grind well together. 

On the other hand, mix 100 parts by weight of Paris 
white and 50 of white lead with 30 of boiled oil, grind 
and then mix with the first mixture, adding sufficient 
boiled oil to give the mass the consistency of soft 
dough. 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


343 


Zumatic drier. Zinc carbonate 90 parts by weight, 
manganese borate 10, linseed oil 90. Grind thoroughly 
and keep in tin tubes. The proportions generally used 
are 1 lb. of the drier to 25 lbs. of paint. It is a power¬ 
ful drier in a convenient form. 

Guynemer's drier. Maganese sulphate 1 part, 
manganese acetate 1 part, calcined zinc sulphate 1 part, 
white zinc oxide 97 parts. Grind the sulphates and 
acetates to an impalpable powder, and sift through a 
metallic sieve. Dust 3 parts of this powder over 97 
parts of zinc oxide spread out over a slab or board, mix 
thoroughly and grind. The resulting powder, mixed 
in the proportion of \ to 1 per cent, with zinc white, 
will enormously increase the drying property of this 
body, which will become dry in a few hours. 

Painter 1 s driers. Litharge ground to a paste with 
drying oil. For dark colors. 

Sugar of lead and drying oil. For pale colors. 

Oxidized oil drier. Oxidixed oil or well boiled lin¬ 
seed oil makes a good drier, very useful in many cases. 

To Prepare Zinc for Painting. 

Dissolve in 64 parts of water, 1 part each of chloride 
of copper, nitrate of copper and sal ammoniac; and 
then add 1 part of commercial hydrochloric acid. 
Brush the zinc over with this mixture, which gives a 
deep black. Leave it to dry for 24 hours, when any 
oil color will firmly adhere to it, and withstand both 
heat and damp. 

Wood-Fillers. 

1. Starch 12 parts, heavy spar 12, siccative 2, oil of 
turpentine a sufficient quantity. 

Make of the consistency of ordinary varnish, and for 


344 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

dark woods add up to 1 part by weight of umber. Ap¬ 
ply the filler with a medium stiff brush. When the 
coat, at first lustrous, becomes dull, remove everything 
from the surface by rubbing across the grain of the 
wood with a piece of felt or strong leather fastened to 
a piece of wood. Allow the prepared wood to dry 8 
hours, then rub thoroughly with glass paper, when it 
is ready for polishing. 

2. Hard wood filler. Use boiled oil and enough corn 
starch to make a very thick paste. Add a little japan 
and reduce with turpentine. Add no color for white 
oak; for dark ash and chestnut use a little raw sienna ; 
for walnut, burnt umber and a very little Venetian 
red; for bay wood, burnt sienna. Use enough color to 
cover the white of the starch. Apply with brush and 
rags. Let dry 48 hours, then sandpaper. For second 
coat use less oil, but more japan and turpentine. 

3. German wood filling. Fill the pores of the wood 
with fresh tallow and plaster of Paris well amalgama- 
mated before a fire, if the weather is cold. Darken, if 
required, with any coloring to suit. When well rub¬ 
bed in give a coat of shellac, and French polish or var¬ 
nish. 

4. Boiled linseed oil 1 quart, spirits of turpentine 3 
quarts, corn starch 5 lbs., japan 1 quart, calcined mag¬ 
nesia 2 ozs. Mix thoroughly. 

5. Linseed oil 1 quart, spirits of turpentine \ pint; 
lime, the size of a base ball, broken fine. Let the 
mixture simmer on a stove in a covered vessel for two 
or three hours; then strain through a coarse cloth. 
Apply to the wood and after 24 hours rub off with a 
woolen cloth, and polish. 

6. Filling for cracks. A very complete filling for 
open cracks in floors, etc., may be made by thoroughly 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


345 


soaking newspaper in paste made of 1 lb. flour, 3 
quarts water and a tablepoonful of alum, thoroughly 
boiled and mixed. Make the fluid mixture about as 
thick as putty, and it will harden like papier mache. 
This preparation may be used for moulds for various 
purposes. 

Knotting. 

The purpose of “ knotting ” is to guard against the 
knots appearing in the finished work by stopping 
their absorbent quality, or closing the apertures of the 
fibre, and thus preventing the effusion of gum or sap. 

A preparation, known as “Knotting,” which is 
used for that purpose, may be purchased at the paint- 
shops, but the following are two excellent receipts for 
making similar compositions, which are to be applied 
with a small brush : 

I. Mix ^ pint of japanner’s gold size, 1 teaspoonful 
of red lead, 1 pint of wood naphtha, and 7 ozs. of 
orange shellac. Keep the mixture in a warm place 
until the shellac is entirely dissolved, shaking it fre¬ 
quently. 

II. White or red lead mixed with glue size, and ap ¬ 
plied warm. 

Mixing Kalsomine. 

Whiting 10 lbs., sal soda 4 lb., white glue f lb., lin¬ 
seed oil 1 quart. Dissolve the sal soda in hot water, 
then stir in the oil, add more warm water and stir in 
the whiting. Melt the glue in the usual manner and 
stir that in, and the kalsomine is finished. 

A lime kalsomine or wash very good for cheap work 
is made as follows : Take six quarts thick lime white¬ 
wash, made of the best lime slaked in hot water. 
Mix oil of turpentine and linseed oil, each h pint, and 


346 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISIIER. 

stir it in while the wash is hot, then add ^ lb. of pow* 
dered alum. Have the mixture thick enough to cover 
like kalsomine, and put it on with a kalsomine brush. 
The edges dry slow, and no matter how much suction 
there may be in the wall, the wash will spread smooth 
and easy. 

Cleaning and Restoring Works in Oil-Painting. 

Of the importance of this minor function of the art 
of painting, a just estimate may be formed, by consider¬ 
ing that there is hardly a limit to the time which 
works in oil-painting may be preserved by care and 
attention. These are subject to deterioration and dis¬ 
figurement simply by dirt—by the failure of their 
grounds,—by the obscuration and discolorment of ve¬ 
hicles and varnishes,—by the fading and changing of 
colors,—by the cracking of the body and surface,—by 
damp, mildew, and foul air,—and by mechanical vio¬ 
lence. The first thing necessary to be done is to re¬ 
store the ground, if on canvas, by stretching or lining 
with new canvas. In cases of simple dirt, washing 
with a sponge or soft leather with soap and water, ju¬ 
diciously used, is sufficient. Varnishes are removed 
by friction or solution, or by chemical and mechanical 
means united, when the varnish is combined, as com¬ 
monly happens, with oil and a variety of foulness. 

Removing Varnish from Pictures or Pine Work. 

In removing varnish by friction, if it be a soft var¬ 
nish, such as that of mastic, the simple rubbing of the 
finger-ends, with or without water, may be found suf¬ 
ficient ; a portion of the resin attaches itself to the 
fingers, and by continued rubbing removes the var¬ 
nish. If it be a hard varnish, such as that of copal, 


USEFUL RECEIPTS. 


347 


which is to be removed, friction with sea or river 
sand, the particles of which have a rotundity that pre¬ 
vents their scratching, will accomplish the purpose. 

The solvents commonly employed for this purpose 
are the several alkalies, alcohol, and essential oils, 
used simply or combined. Of the alkalies, the vola¬ 
tile in its mildest state, or carbonate of ammonia, is 
the only one which can be safely used in removing 
dirt, oil, and varnish, from a picture, which it does 
powerfully; it must therefore be much diluted with 
water according to the power required, and employed 
with judgment and caution, stopping its action on the 
painting at the proper time by the use of pure water 
and a sponge. 

Many other methods of cleaning have been recom¬ 
mended and employed, and in particular instances, for 
sufficient chemical reasons, with success ; some of 
which we will recount, because, in art so uncertain, it 
is good to be rich in resources. 

A thick coat of wet fuller' 1 s earth may be employed 
with safety, and, after remaining on the paint a suffi¬ 
cient time to soften the extraneous surface, may be re¬ 
moved by washing, and leave the picture pure—and 
an architect of the author’s acquaintance has succeeded 
in a similar way in restoring both paintings and gild¬ 
ing to their original beauty by coating them with wet 
clay. Ox-gall is even more efficacious than soap. 

In filling cracks and replacing portions of the 
ground, putty formed of white-lead, whiting, varnish, 
and drying oil, tinted somewhat lighter than the local 
colors require, may be employed, as plaster of Paris 
may also in some cases ; and, in restoring colors acci¬ 
dentally removed, it should be done with a vehicle of 
simple varnish, because of the change of tint which 
takes place after drying in oil. 


348 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Removing Paint f rom woodwork , etc. 

Burning off, etc. In those cases in which it is requisite 
to remove painting entirely from its ground, it is usual 
to resort to mechanical scraping, etc., or to the very 
dangerous operation of setting fire to the painted sur¬ 
face immediately after washing it over with oil of tur¬ 
pentine, called turps, for burning off the paint from 
old disfigured work ; an operation that may be safely 
and more easily accomplished by laying on a thick 
wash or plaster of fresh slacked quicklime mixed with 
soda: which may be washed off' with water the follow¬ 
ing day, carrying with it the paint, grease, and other 
foulness, so that when clear and dry, the painting may 
be renewed as on fresh work. Clear colling is some¬ 
times resorted to over old painting, for the purpose of 
repainting, in which case the surface exposed to the 
sun’s rays or alterations of temperature is liable to be¬ 
come blistered and scale off*. 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


349 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS 

TO WHICH PAINTERS AND VARNISHERS ARE PARTICU¬ 
LARLY LIABLE. 

The business of a painter and varnisher is generally 
and not without reason, considered an unhealthy one. 
Many of the substances which he is necessarily in the 
habit of employing are of a nature to do injury to the 
constitution; and great caution and care are required to 
prevent these from producing serious consequences. 
Much, however, of the mischief that is done arises from 
the want of proper precaution ; the being ignorant of the 
symptoms of disorder, or want of due attention to them 
in the beginning; and, more than all, the use of improper 
remedies, from being unacquainted with those that ought 
to be used. I think, therefore, that I shall be rendering 
an acceptable service to the painter and varnisher by 
mentioning the principal diseases to which their occupa¬ 
tions render them more liable than persons differently 
employed, with the proper means of remedy. 

Painter s Colic. 

This disease, the most common and the most danger¬ 
ous to which painters are liable, arises with them from 
breathing in the fumes and handling the different pre- 


350 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

parations of white lead. It is a violent species of colic, 
and may be produced by other causes; but when it 
proceeds from load, it is always the most obstinate, and 
the most tedious and difficult of cure. 

The first symptoms are a pain at the pit of the stomach, 
gradually increasing and proceeding downwards to the 
bowels ; it is particularly violent round the navel. The 
person is likewise afflicted with frequent belching, slight 
sickness at the stomach, continued thirst, a quick short 
pulse, a confinement of the bowels, and repeated attempts 
to obtain a stool without effect. 

When some or all of these symptoms are experienced, 
a strong dose of castor oil should be immediately taken 
and repeated till it opens the body freely. If it will not 
act, calomel pills must be taken in turn with the castor 
oil; and should both these fail to purge effectually, a 
clyster must also be employed, composed of ten ounces 
of senna and three grains of opium in solution. The 
warm bath, as well as warm fomentations in flannel cloths 
of the lower part of the stomach, are extremely service¬ 
able in relieving the spasms; and should the symptoms 
continue, a blister applied to the abdomen may prove 
useful. 

The person affected should be kept as quiet as possible, 
both in body and mind : he should take no wine, spirits, 
malt liquor, nor any kind of solid food; but should con¬ 
fine himself to broth diet, and copious draughts of weak 
diluting drinks, such as barley-water. 

Where the bowels are very obstinately confined, and 
the person is joung and of a full habit, it may be ad vis- 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


' 351 


able to begin with taking from him a quantity of blood, 
according to circumstances, in order to prevent inflam¬ 
mation. 

I have not mentioned the strength of the doses to be 
employed as purgatives, because that must be determined 
by the constitution of the sick person and the manner in 
which the medicines operate. In a general way, re¬ 
member never to give too strong a dose at once, as it can 
always be repeated as often as may be found necessary. 

If the remedies I have mentioned prove successful in 
removing the early symptoms of the dry belly-ache, 
which will generally be the case, the person who has 
suffered, on returning to his work, should, if possible, 
entirely avoid, for some time, all parts of his business in 
which preparations of lead are employed. He should, 
also, long after he may seem to feel quite well, keep to 
the light diet I have mentioned above, or he may bring 
on a relapse worse than the first attack of the disorder. 

Few distempers grow more rapidly worse, and it is of 
the utmost importance to attend to its first symptoms, 
for if these are neglected, the most frightful consequences 
ensue. The violence of the pains increases beyond de¬ 
scription; the outside of the belly feels pain at the slight¬ 
est touch, and the muscles inside become wrapped into 
knots; a difficulty of making water, sometimes amount¬ 
ing to almost a total stoppage, takes place; and the 
bowels are so contracted by spasms as scarcely to admit 
a clyster. If these symptoms proceed, the spasms become 
more frequent and violent; and either the costiveness 
cannot be overcome, (in which case inflammation in the 


352 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

bowels succeeds, and the patient’s death is certain,) or, 
if his life be saved, he generally remains a victim, in a 
greater or less degree, to the palsy. 

I have mentioned these fatal circumstances to show 
the necessity of immediately attending to the first ap¬ 
pearance of this dangerous disorder. In an advanced 
state of it, I do not pretend to prescribe—the best medi¬ 
cal assistance must immediately be obtained. The re¬ 
medies I have recommended are only designed for that 
early stage of the distemper of which the symptoms 
have already been described. They may then be used 
with advantage, and, if persevered in, will prevent the 
danger of severer suffering. 


Weakness of the IFmfe. 

This is a partial kind of palsy, which sometimes re¬ 
mains after the painter’s colic is cured. In some cases, 
too, it comes on without any previous attack of that dis¬ 
order, where the injury has been more owing to handling 
lead than inhaling its fumes. 

Where this weakness of the wrists is experienced by 
a painter, let him take, three or four times a-day, a dose 
of nitrate of silver, of from one to three grains, according 
to the manner in which it may operate. Before taking 
each of these doses, he should also take some castor oil. 
If it purge him too violently, let a little opium be mixed 
with the dose, lest bloody stools should be brought on. 
It is better to give the nitrate of silver in solution than 
in a solid form. 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


353 


Where the Dowels are so weak as to make any strong 
purge dangerous, this weakness of the wrists has often 
been cured by rubbing a drachm of strong mercurial 
ointment upon them every night and morning till the 
mouth became sore. Indeed, this will always be found 
a useful application. 

One of the best methods in the weakness of the wrists 
arising from the handling of lead is, in addition to the 
taking of medicine or the application of mercurial oint¬ 
ment, to make use of a splint, made something like a 
battledore, fastened under the forearm, and continued 
to the extremities of the fingers. This has, in many in¬ 
stances, restored the strength of the wrists, even where 
the weakness amounted to complete palsy. 

I have already observed that confirmed palsy may be 
the effect of a violent attack of the painter’s colic. The 
remarks, however, which I made under that head apply 
here. I shall not venture to prescribe for that melan¬ 
choly state of disease. My object is not to point out 
remedies for those extreme cases, but to suggest the best 
means of preventing them. 

Effects of Poisonous Substances used in Painting and 

Varnishing. 

These are principally lead, quicksilver, arsenic, and 
verdigris. Of the injurious effects of lead I have already 
spoken. Arsenic is found in some particular colours, 
especially in orpiment and realgar; and the circumstance 

is a strong objection to the use of them. Quicksilver 
23 


354 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

enters into the composition of various amalgams em¬ 
ployed in lacquering and gilding. The poisonous pro¬ 
perties of verdigris are well known. 

It cannot be too strongly impressed upon the mind of 
the painter or varnisher that mineral poisons of every 
description are as effectually taken into the system of the 
body by handling them, or inhaling their fumes, as by 
actually swallowing them; and that the consequences, 
though not so immediately fatal, are as certainly inju¬ 
rious. Care should therefore be taken not to handle 
them more than is absolutely necessary; and likewise, 
by keeping a thorough draft of air, and leaning as little 
as possible over such substances during their preparation, 
to avoid, as much as in your power, the breathing in the 
fumes arising from them. 

But as you cannot entirely escape these, it will be 
well to know how to distinguish their respective cha¬ 
racters. The effects of lead are sufficiently distinguished 
by the peculiar diseases it produces, which have been 
noticed before. Arsenic and quicksilver are attended 
with different consequences. When the former has 
found its way into the stomach, it will occasion a prick¬ 
ing and burning sensation, with thirst and sometimes 
vomiting. A pain will likewise be felt in the bowels, 
but without producing purging. If, after using colours 
which contain a mixture of arsenic, you experience any 
of these symptoms, a little fresh charcoal, powdered fine, 
in small doses repeated, will be found very serviceable. 
An emetic should also be taken, and the body kept well 
open. 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


355 


The fumes or handling of quicksilver produce, besides 
the symptoms mentioned in speaking of arsenic, saliva¬ 
tion in a greater or less degree, bad breath, griping 
pains in the stomach, and severe purging. White of 
egg, dissolved in water and filtered, and diluted as cir¬ 
cumstances require, is one of the best remedies when 
these symptoms are violent. A very good emetic, in 
such cases, is one ounce of sub-carbonate of magnesia 
dissolved in a pint of water; a glassful of the mixture 
being taken every few minutes, at such intervals as are 
needful to promote vomiting. 

Verdigris is readily distinguished by its nauseous and 
corroding effects upon the stomach. If you have reason 
to think you have suffered from the frequent use of this 
colour, common sugar, taken in such quantities as to 
open the bowels frequently, will be found the very best 
remedy. 

I strongly recommend to every painter and varnisher, 
when engaged in any part of his business which requires 
him to employ a poisonous substance, whether lead or 
any other, the use of tobacco—I mean chewing it. It is 
the most powerful check to a substance acting to produce 
spasms, by suspending the muscular action in the sto¬ 
mach. In short, tobacco possesses in this respect the 
advantages without the danger of opium, and has been 
found of the greatest service to persons in the trades 
above mentioned. At the same time, persons who use 
it. for the purpose I have stated, should be careful not to * 
indulge in the practice too freely; for the excessive 
chewing of tobacco will not only occasion a feeling of 


356 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

stupid languor, which unfits a man for exertion, but may 
in time bring on a disease almost as much to be dreaded 
as the evils which it is intended to guard against. 

Nausea. 

Oil of turpentine, burnt oils of several descriptions, 
and some other substances used in painting and varnish¬ 
ing, give out fumes, which, though not of a poisonous 
nature, are apt to occasion a slight sickness at the sto¬ 
mach, accompanied with a headache and a fainting sen¬ 
sation, to persons whose nerves are not strong: and 
these effects are frequently felt by young people before 
they become accustomed to the business. In many 
cases, removing for a short time from the offensive fumes 
into a pure air, and drinking a very little spriug water, 
will dissipate these feelings. If they return, some open¬ 
ing medicine, or an emetic should be taken, which, if a 
foul stomach, as often happeus, has been the cause, will 
remove it. But if you are a beginner in the business, 
and find yourself constantly affected in this manner on 
such occasions, I would advise you to turn to some other 
occupation; for a person of decidedly weak nerves will 
be subject to constant ill health as a painter. 

Burns and Scalds. 

In no business are these accidents more liable to occur 
to the persons engaged in it than in painting, varnish¬ 
ing, and gilding. 

In all scalds and burns, it is of the first importance tc 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


357 


apply a remedy at the instant. Spirit of wine or turpen¬ 
tine, applied at the moment, generally prevents the rising 
of blisters; if it be rectified spirits, it is so much the 
better. Spirit of wine or turpentine is decidedly the best 
immediate remedy when the skin is broken. If the vio¬ 
lence or size of the burns or scalds render the application 
of the spirit in the common way too painful, cover the 
injured parts with pieces of bladder softened by dipping 
them in warm water, and keep the outer surface con¬ 
stantly wetted with the spirit. 

When the burn is considerable, fresh yolk of egg (if 
spirit is not at hand) applied to it will relieve the pain 
and forward the cure. A salve composed of one part of 
yellow wax and three parts of olive oil, which you can 
easily make yourself and carry about you, in case of an 
accident, will likewise be extremely useful if applied at 
the moment of its happening. 

Scraped potato is very often applied to a scald or 
burn. Some have pronounced it a certain cure, others 
have called it injurious: both parties are wrong. The 
fact is, it does nothing towards curing the burn; but if 
applied at the first moment , it prevents its becoming 
worse, and relieves the pain. It is therefore very right 
to apply it, if no other remedy be near, till a better can 
be procured. Water, however, is almost always to be 
obtained, and, in the absence of other remedies, should 
instantly be had recourse to. The part or parts which 
have been injured should, without a moment’s delay, be 
plunged into very cold water, or plentifully pumped 
upon, and an astonishingly rapid change from torture to 


358 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

* 

ease will take place. After the immersion has con¬ 
tinued a proper length of time, the parts injured 
should be covered with linen rags continually kept 
wetted with water, and streams of air passed over them 
from time to time by a pair of bellows, till the person 
feels a freezing sensation. 

Water is always servicable in burns ; and where the 
skin is not broken, many eminent surgeons consider it 
as the best of remedies. 

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. 

• 

I shall conclude this subject with a few general re¬ 
marks, principally respecting the diet and manner of 
living of the painter; on which, indeed, his exemption 
from the diseases which so severely affect many in his 
trade mainly depend. 

He should avoid all acid drinks, such as cider and 
effervescing liquors; and abstain as much as possible 
from sours both in food and drink, even the use of 
vinegar; for acids have a peculiar tendency to combine 
with any portion of lead that he may have imbibed, 
and will act upon the stomach in a most injurious 
manner. 

When a griping feeling is experienced by the 
painter, he often has recourse to a glass of raw whisky, 
with the idea of obtaining relief. Now, he cannot 
commit a greater error. This feeling indicates the 
commencement of that dangerous disorder, the dry 
belly-ache, and spirituous liquors will both bring it on 
more rapidly and aggravate the symptons. There is, 
besides, a vulgar but most mistaken notion that spirits 
taken inwardly are. useful in guarding against the 
fumes of lead and other poisonous substances. And it 
is melancholy to see the number of persons engaged in 


DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS. 


359 


the painting and varnishing trade who, from this false 
idea, are led to adopt the pernicious practice of drink¬ 
ing drams in the morning; and not infrequently, from 
the hold this destructive habit gains upon them, at 
other times of the day too. Now, so far from this 
practice being serviceable, I can assure the dram- 
drinking painter that, whenever he is attacked by that 
disease, so dangerous to those in his trade, he will find 
it rendered far more violent by his previous use of 
spirituous liquors, and more likely to terminate in in¬ 
flammation or palsy. Ardent spirits in a raw state 
should never be touched by the painter ; and when 
taken mixed, they should rather be weak than other¬ 
wise. 

I have had frequent occasion to observe that paint¬ 
ers in general are partial to a great deal of solid and 
high-seasoned food. Now, it will be perceived that 
the disorder from which they have most to fear, and 
which is most common among them, is always at¬ 
tended by a confined state of the bowels, from which its 
principal danger arises. A painter who regards his 
health should always prefer such food as is light and 
easy of digestion ; and if he take any solids, it should 
be in small quantities, and not frequently. For the 
same reason, though I do not condemn malt liquor to 
a painter in good health, I should advise him not to 
take it in large quantities at a time, as it is heavy on 
the stomach. The lead which he cannot avoid more 
or less imbibing has a tendency to make him costive ; 
and his business is not, like some others, accompanied 
with strong exercise to promote digestion. 

I need scarcely remark on the advantages of clean¬ 
liness in his person to him, since the handling of pre¬ 
parations of lead is one of the injurious parts of his oc¬ 
cupation. 


360 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Ill conclusion, let me once more impress upon him 
the importance and necessity of Temperance. The 
neglect of it in a workman of any other description 
may bring him to sickness , must bring him to poverty; 
but the intemperate and drunken Painter or Varnisher 
makes the most rapid strides in his power to bring 
upon himself painful sickness, and very often prema¬ 
ture death. 


CIIEVREUL’S PRINCIPLES OF HARMONY 

AND 

CONTRAST OF COLORS. 

-- 

BY CHARLES MARTEL* 


In entering upon the study of the principles of Har¬ 
mony and Contrast of Colors as established by M. Chev- 
reul, it will be necessary for the reader to forget much 
that he may have learned from other sources. 

The notions hitherto prevalent on this subject were 
very vague an-d empirical, not to say fanciful. They 
had no foundation in observation or experiment, conse¬ 
quently no formula or law could be deduced from them 
wherewith to guide the inquirer. M. Chevreul’s work is 
based on strict scientific investigation; his observations 
and experiments can be repeated by everyone, and their 
validity tested and verified. He has established the ex¬ 
istence of a law which governs the phenomena of con¬ 
trast of Colors, and his book develops the process by 
which he arrived at it, and the numerous applications to 
the arts of which it is susceptible. 

There is an arrangement and a sequence in which 
these facts and principles must of necessity be placed. 
But it may be convenient to anticipate some of them; 
to bring them nearer together, by which their mutual 
connexion and reciprocal influence may he made more 
apparent. Among the principles which govern the 
harmony and contrast of colors, few can be taken abso¬ 
lutely or independently of others. By adopting one 


* From The Principles of Harmony aud Contrast of Colors and their ap¬ 
plication to the Arts, By M. E. Chevreul. Translated from the French by 
Charles Martel, Loudon, 1890. 


( 361 ) 







362 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

principle hastily before we have ascertained what other 

principles modify it, we fall into the errors attendant 

upon hasty generalization and false conclusions. 

DEFINITIONS. 

Primary Colors . . . Blue, Red, and Yellow. 

Secondary Colors. . . Orange, Green, and Violet. 

Normal Colors . . . The Colors of the Spectrum. 

Binary Colors .... Compounds of two Primaries. 

Broken Colors . . . Colors in which all three pri¬ 

maries exist. 

Complementary Colors. The primary or the secondary 

requisite to make up the 
complement of colored rays 
that constitute white light. 
The complementary of a pri¬ 
mary, as red. is the secon¬ 
dary composed of the other 
two primaries (green). 

Luminous Colors . . Yellow, Orange. Red, Light 

Green, and the light tones 
of sombre colors. 

Sombre Colors .... Blue, Violet, and the broken 

tones of the luminous colors. 

Warm Colors .... The same as luminous colors. 

('old Colors.The same as sombre colors. 

Pigments.Material Colors, or paints. 

Gray (normal) .... Normal Gray consists of pure 

black and white mixed in 
various proportions, produc¬ 
ing a variety of tones from 
white to black. 

Colored Grays . . . Normal Gra} r , to which a pri 

mary or a secondary is added. 

Tertiary Colors . . . Colored Grays. Russet is red 

gray. Olive is blue gray. 
Citrine is yellow-gray. 

Tones.The series of gradations of a 

pure color from its greatest 
intensity, weakened by the 
addition of white, or deep¬ 
ened by the addition of black. 



HARMONY OF COLORS. 


363 


Hue ...... . The change produced in one pure 

Color by the addition to it 
of another pure color. The 
original color must always be 
in the ascendancy, otherwise 
it becomes a hue of the 
color added to it. 

Scale.The series of hues and tones of 

any given color. 

Tints. The tones of a color produced 

by the addition of white 
added to the normal color. 

Shades.The tones of a color produced 

by the addition of black to 
the normal color. 

Prismatic Spectrum . The image of a ray of light 

when decomposed by a prism. 
It consists of Blue, Red. and 
Yellow, and the combina¬ 
tions produced by their mix¬ 
ture or blending with each 
other, (secondaries) Orange, 
Green, Yiolet and its hues, 
purple, indigo, lavender, etc. 

ANALYSIS OF LIGHT AND COLOR. 

THE SOURCE OF COLOR. 

As Light is the source of Color, it is necessary to 
commence with an examination of its composition, as 
the laws of contrast of colors are entirely dependent 
upon it. 

When a ray of sunshine, or white light, as it is termed, 
passes through a glass prism, it is decomposed, or sepa¬ 
rated. and if the image formed, called the prismatic 
spectrum , is received upon a white screen, placed at u 
suitable distance from the prism, it will be found to con¬ 
sist of various colors, arranged in a certain order, like 
those of the rainbow. 

These colors are six in number: three of which are 
simple; and three which are compound, resulting from 
the mixture of the simple colors in pairs. 



364 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Blue, Red, and Yellow are simple, or primary colors. 

Green, Violet, and Orange are compound, or secon¬ 
dary colors. 

The mixture of Blue with Red produces Violet. 

The mixture of Blue with Yellow produces Green. 

The mixture of Red with Yellow produces Orange. 

These compound colors vary in hue according to the 
proportions of the simple colors of which they are 
formed : thus, by increasing the quantity of blue in the 
mixture of blue and red, we produce purple, indigo, etc. 
'The same elfect takes place with Greens. 

The primary colors are simple and pure, they cannot, 
like the secondaries, be produced by the mixture of other 
colors. 

It is evident that the color of the primaries cannot 
vary as color (or in liut), but only in intensity, at least 
so long as they are kept pure, but the hues of the secon¬ 
daries may vary infinitely, according as one or the other 
predominates. 

THE TYPE, OR STANDARD, OF COLOR. 

To avoid misapprehension when speaking of colors, it 
is necessary to refer to some invariable type or standard 
of color, so that when speaking of Blue, we may not be 
in doubt as to whether the color represented by Prussian 
Blue, or by Cobalt Blue is meant. This type, or stan¬ 
dard, is supplied by nature in the prismatic spectrum, 
and—although in a weaker degree—in the rainbow. 
Therefore, whenever we speak of pure colors, those re¬ 
presenting the colors of the spectrum must be under¬ 
stood. They are called also normal colors. 

ON THE MIXTURE OF COLORS. 

We must never lose sight of the fact, that the results 
predicated of the mixture of colors, taken theoretically, 
are not obtained by mixing pigments, or paints, and 
dyes. 

'Theoretically, the mixture, or combination of the 
colors of the prismatic spectrum, by means of a lens or 
concave mirror, produces a ray of white light; but when 
we mix pigments representing those colors, taken as 
pure as we can possibly obtain them, the mixture is not 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


365 


white, but gray or black, according to their intensity 
etc. : 

For every Blue pigment contains also either red or 
yellow ; 

Every Red pigment contains also either blue or 
yellow ; 

Every Yellow pigment contains also either blue 
or red. 

And although, as we have said, the union of the blue, 
red, and yellow of the spectrum produces white , the 
union of blue, red, and yellow pigments produces gray 
or black. 

If we had pigments that were in color as pure as those 
of the spectrum, their mixture would also yield pure 
colors. 

Ultramarine is the only'' pigment that approaches a 
prismatic color in its purity, but even that has a slight 
tinge of red in its composition, causing it to appear 
violet. 

We can take gamboge as the representative of pure 
Yellow, carmine as that of Red, and Prussian blue as 
that of Blue. 

In mixing pigments to obtain pure secondary colors, 
we shall obtain a better result if we select such as are 
free from the color not essential to the compound. 
Thus, to obtain a pure green, which consists of blue and 
yellow only, we must take a blue tinged with yellow 
rather than with red, and a yellow tinged with blue 
rather than with red ; if we took either of those pigments 
tinged with red, a quantity of black would be formed by 
its mixture with the two other primaries, and the green 
would be tarnished or broken. So long as pure blue 
and yellow are mixed together, in varying proportions, 
but without the addition of the other primary color 
(red), the resulting compound color, green, remains a 
pure color. Such is the theory, and the practical result 
is the same if the pigments we select to form the mix¬ 
ture are both free from the third primary. 

When the three primaries (pigments) are mixed to¬ 
gether in equal strength and proportions, the resulting 
compound is black. But if they are mixed in unequal 


366 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


strength and proportions, the mixture is gray, colored 
l>y the primary or the secondary in excess in the Com 
pound. 

Normal Gray is formed by mixing a black with a 
white pigment in varying proportions, producing various 
tones of Gray. 

By adding a primary or a secondary to normal Gray, 
we produce a colored Gray. 

There are as many classes of Gray as there aie pri¬ 
mary and secondary colors, and as many hues of Gray 
as there are hues of these pure colors. What are com¬ 
monly called Tertiaries, are, in fact, colored Grays: 
thus, Russet is red-gray, Citrine is yellow-gray, Olive is 
blue-gray. 

If the primaries are mixed in unequal proportions, or 
are of different intensities, the mixture is a gray : 

If the blue is in excess, the mixture is a blue-gray. 

If the red is in excess, the mixture is a red-gray. 

If the yellow is in excess, the mixture is a yellow- 


gray. 


If the blue and the red are in excess, the mixture is 
a violet-gray. 

If the blue and the yellow are in excess, the mix¬ 
ture is a green-gray. 

If the yellow and the red are in excess, the mixture 
is an orange-gray. 

When two secondaries are mixed together the gray 
that results is colored by the primary which enters into 
the composition of both secondaries, thus : 

In mixing Green with Violet, the Gray is colored by 


Blue, that being the primary in excess. 
Green consists of Blue 

i ~\t ii i * 116 COL 


[ The compound contains 
► twice as much Blue as 
Red or Yellow. 


and Yellow. 


Violet consists of Blue 
and Red. 


In mixing Green with Orange, the Gray is colored by 
Yellow, that being the primary in excess. 



The compound contains 
twice as much Yellow 
as Blue or Red. 



HARMONY OF COLORS. 


367 


In mixing Violet with Orange, the Gray is colored by 
Red. that being the primary in excess. 

Orange consists of Red j 
and Yellow. 


The compound contains 
twice as much Red as 
Blue or Yellow. 


Violet consists of Red 
and Blue. J 

It is understood that the colors employed are of equal 
strength and proportions. 


COLORS OF OBJECTS. 

The colors of objects are supposed to be due to a 
power they possess of absorbing certain portions of the 
colored rays that make up a ray of white light, and of 
reflecting others. The reflected portion being comple¬ 
mentary to the portion absorbed ; and if added together 
they would constitute white light. 

Thus a red-colored substance is considered to absorb 
blue and yellow, and reflect red. 

A green-colored body absorbs red, and reflects blue 
and yellow, 

A white substance, then, in conformity with this view, 
reflects all the rays that constitute white light, while a 
black substance absorbs them. 

Bodies reflect a considerable portion of white light as 
well as colored light, according as the surfaces are 
smooth, glossy, polished, rough, channelled, elc. 

The optical effect of a color is greatly modified by the 
condition of the surface of the colored body; thus, pieces 
of silk, cotton, linen, woollen, and velvet, although dyed 
of exactly the same hue and tone of color, appear to be 
of quite different colors. 

The depth or intensity of color presented by velvets, 
and certain flowers, such as heartsease, etc., is due to 
the surface being channelled, ridged, or furrowed. 


COMPLEMENTARY COLORS. 

As white light is composed of three colors, Blue. Red. 
and Yellow, the color that is missing from the compound 
is termed the Complementary Color; thus— 

Blue is the complementary of Orange (Red and 
Yellow). 


368 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

Red is the complementary of Green (Blue and Yel¬ 
low). 

Yellow is the complementary of Violet (Blue and 
Red). 

By this it will be seen that the complementary of a 
primary color is the secondary composed of the other 
two primaries, and vice versa ; thus : 

Orange (red and yellow) is complementary to Blue. 

Green (blue and yellow) is complementary to Red. 

Violet (red and blue) is complementary to Yellow. 

If the Blue is tinged with red, its complementary. 
Orange, will be yellower. 

If the Blue is tinged with yellow, its complementary. 
Orange, will be redder. 

If the Red is tinged with blue, its complementary, 
Green, will be yellower. 

If the Red is tinged with yellow, its complementary, 
Green, will be bluer. 

If the Yellow is tinged with red, its complementary, 
Violet will be bluer. 

If the Yellow is tinged with blue, its complementary, 
Violet will be redder. 

CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH MODIFY A COLOR. 

A given color, Red, for instance, may experience 
many modifications, so as to appear very different from 
what it really is, according to the circumstances under 
which it is viewed. 

It may be modified in its color: 

1°. By being placed in contact with Blue, the red 
appears yellower. 

‘2°. By being placed in contact with Yellow, it appears 
bluer. 

3°. By being placed in contact with Green, it appears 
purer and brighter. 

4°. By being placed in contact with Black, it appears 
duller. 

5 \ By being placed in contact with White, it appears 
lighter and brighter. 

6°. By being placed in contact with Gray, it appears 
brighter. 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


3(59 


Thus the same Red may appear many different rede 
according to the circumstances under which it is viewed 

It may also be modified in its intensity, or tone. 

Thus, if a dark color be placed beside a different, but 
lighter color, the dark color appears deeper, and the 
light color appears lighter. This is the result of con¬ 
trast of tone. 

A color is also greatly modified by gloss, as is shown 
by the plumage of birds, the wdngs of butterflies, and by 
certain flowers 

The colors of objects are also greatly modified by the 
form of the object, which may produce-varieties of light 
and shade, and thus exhibit many tones of the same 
color. 

Both the tone and the hue of a colored object are 
modified by the quality of the light by which it is illu¬ 
mined, whether it be direct sunlight, diffused daylight, 
or diffused reflected light. 

MODIFICATIONS PRODUCED IN A COLOR BY 
BEING PLACED IN CONTACT WITH 
ANOTHER COLOR. 

If we look at two stripes of the same color, but of dif¬ 
ferent tones, or at two stripes of different colors taken 
at the same tone, arid placed side by side, if the stripes 
be not too wide, the eye perceives certain modifications, 
affecting both the quality and the intensity of the colors, 
and they will appear very differently from what they do 
when viewed separately. 

First, the tone of each stripe will appear changed, the 
light tone will appear lighter, and the deep tone deeper, 
commencing at the line of contact, where it will be great¬ 
est, and gradually diminishing as it recedes from it: 
this is contrast of tone. 

Secondly, the color of the different stripes will appear 
changed, each appearing as differently as possible from 
the other : this is contrast of color. 

The contiguous colors are modified in hue, as if the 
complementary of the neighboring color was added to 
each. 

These modifications, taken together, constitute simul- 
24 


370 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNLSHER. 


taneous contrast of color: wmcn may be expressed in 
the following’ terms: 

Whenever the eye sees at the same time two con¬ 
tiguous colors, they will appear as dissimilar as 
possible, both in their hue and in their tone. 

Thus, if the stripes be blue and yellow, the comple¬ 
mentary of blue, which is orange, is added to the yellow, 
making it appear redder, and more brilliant; while violet 
the complementary of yellow, is added to the blue, mak¬ 
ing the latter appear indigo; the color added to each 
being red, the primary absent from the view of the con¬ 
tiguous stripes. If the stripes be secondary colors, as 
Orange and Green, the complementary of Orange, blue, 
is added to the green, making it appear bluer, and red, 
the complementary of Green, is added to the Orange, 
making it appear redder; or, what is the same thing, 
Yellow, the absent complementary color, is subtracted 
from each contiguous color ; thus— 

The complementary of Orange is Blue. 

The complementary of Green is Red. 

'The absent complementary is Yellow. 

This Yellow subtracted from Orange makes it appear 
red. and Yellow subtracted from Green makes it appear 
blue, for 

Orange is composed of red and yellow 7 , and 
Green is composed of blue and yellow. 

When we look for a few moments at a given color, the 
eye spontaneously calls up the complementary to that 
color, which, being added to the color first looked at, 
makes it appear duller, or tarnished. The effect is the 
same as if a quantity of gray was added to the color 
looked at, because the complementary color added to 
the original color produces black. 

This calling up of the secondary color by the eye con¬ 
stitutes the phenomenon of successive contrast. 

And the addition of this color so called up to the 
original color constitutes mixed contrast. 

It will be seen that the result of viewing a single color 
is different from that produced by viewing tw r o different 
colors, because the influence of the juxtaposed color is 
absent; there is no complementary color to add to the 
color looked at. 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


371 


The height of tone exercises much influence upon the 
modification ; for if. after looking at orange, we look at 
deep blue, this latter will appear green rather than 
violet, a result the reverse of that presented by light 
blue. 

Whenever there is a great difference between two con¬ 
tiguous colors, the difference is rendered more apparent 
by bringing the same color successively in contact with 
different colors belonging to the same group. 

Example .—If we place Orange beside scarlet-red, nor¬ 
mal-red, or crimson-red, the red becomes bluer, or 
purple, and the orange becomes yellower by losing 
its red. 

If we place normal-red m contact with orange- 
red, the first will appear purple, and the second 
yellower; but if we put the normal-red in contact 
with purple-red, the latter will appear bluer, and 
the other yellower. 

Thus, simple or primary colors, when in con¬ 
tact, pass insensibly into secondary or compound 
colors; for the same Red becomes purple or 
orange, according as it is placed in contact with 
orange-red or with purple-red ; the same Yellow 
appears orange or green, according as it is placed 
in contact with orange-yellow or with greenish 
yellow; so also Blue appears green or violet, 
according as it is placed in contact with greenish- 
blue or with violet-blue. 

When we examine any two patterns of the same color, 
such as blue or red, if they are not identical when com¬ 
pared together, we must consider that the difference is ex¬ 
aggerated by contrast. Thus, if one is greenish-blue, it 
will make the other appear less green or more indigo, or 
even more violet than it really is; and by a reciprocal 
influence, the other will appear greener than when 
viewed alone. It is the same with-the reds; if one is 
more orange than the other, the latter will appear more 
purple, and the former more orange, than it really is. 

As soon as we know the complementary of one color 
in contact with another, it is easy to determine what 


3^2 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

kind of modification the second will receive from the 
first, as this modification is the result of the mixture of 
the complementary with the contiguous color. 

The process is easy when the contiguous colors are 
both primaries, and it is not more difficult when they 
are both secondaries ; for we have only to consider that 
the complementary called up being much less intense 
than the color to which it is added, we obtain the result 
by subtracting from the latter secondary a portion of 
that primary which, with the complementary, forms 
white light; thus— 

Orange, added as a complementary to Green, neu¬ 
tralizes a portion of the green, and consequently 
makes it appear yellower; and the Green, added to a 
portion of Red in the Orange, neutralizes it, and makes 
the orange appear yellower. 

RESULT OF PLACING COLORS IN CON¬ 
TIGUITY. 

FIRST GROUP.—TWO COMPOUND COLORS, HAVING THE 
SAMR SIMPLE COLOR IN EACH. 

By their reciprocal influence they lose more or less of 
the color common to both, and will, therefore, differ 
from each other in proportion to this loss. Example: 

Orange with Green. 

These two colors have yellow as an element in their 
composition, and they lose it by being placed in con¬ 
tiguity : the Orange appears redder, the Green bluer. 

A similar effect takes place with associations of—1, 
Orange and Indigo, Orange and Violet; 2, Green and 
Violet, the first of which lose Red by contiguity, and 
the second lose Blue. 

SECOND GROUP.—A COMPOUND COLOR WITH A SIMPLE 
COLOR WHICH FORMS A PART OF THE COMPOUND. 

1. Orange with Red . 

The Orange loses its red, and appears yellower ; and 
the Red becomes more blue, differing as much as possi 
ble from Orange. 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


373 


2. Orange with Yellow. 

The Orange loses its yellow, and appears redder; the 
Yellow appears bluer, differing as much as possible from 
Orange. 

THIRD GROUP.—TWO SIMPLE COLORS. 

1. Red with Yellow. 

Red, in losing yellow, appears bluer, and the Yellow, 
by losing red, appears bluer ; or, in other words, the 
Red inclines to purple, and the Yellow to green. 

2. Yellow with Blue. 

Yellow, in losing blue, will appear redder, and Blue, 
in losing yellow, will appear more violet; or, in other 
words, the Yellow inclines to red, and the Blue to violet. 

3. Red with Blue. 

Red, in losing blue, will appear yellower, and Blue, in 
losing red, will appear yellowed; or, in other words, the 
Red inclines to orange, and the Blue to green. 

In these examples the colors are modified in the same 
way they would be by the addition of the absent pri¬ 
mary, Yellow. 

FOURTH GROUP.—TWO COMPOUNDS COMPOSED OF THE SAME 

SIMPLE COLORS. 

Indigo and Violet. 

As Indigo only differs from Violet in containing a 
larger proportion of blue in comparison with the red, it 
follows that the difference will be materially increased 
by the Indigo losing its red and inclining to greenish- 
blue, whilst the Violet, acquiring more red, will become 
redder. 

FIFTH GROUP.-A COMPOUND COLOR, AND A SIMPLE COLOR 

WHICH IS NOT FOUND IN THE COMPOUND. 

1. Orange and Blue. 

2. Green and Red. 

3. Violet and Greenish-yellow. 

In opposing complementary colors, each enhances 
the value of the other, in conformity with the phe¬ 
nomena of successive and mixed contrasts. 


874 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


INFLUENCE OF GLOSS AND OF FORM UPON THE EFFECT OF 
CONTRAST OF TWO COLORS. 

The form of an object, and its gloss or polish, have a 
considerable influence upon the effect of associated of 
contiguous colors. Form exerts its influence by the ef¬ 
fects of light and shade it produces, which may conceal 
the ill effect of two associated colors, which are not 
glossy. Thus, flowers often exhibit associations which 
on plane surfaces would appear very disagreeable, if not 
glossy ; as, for instance, in the sweet pea, in which red 
and violet are associated. 

Blue and violet, which have not an agreeable effect on 
flat and unpolished surfaces, have a very good effect in 
the plumage of certain birds, and in the wings of butter¬ 
flies. For the injurious effect of the complementaries 
of these two colors upon each other is lost through the 
influence of the metallic lustre of the feathers and scales. 

BINARY ASSOCIATIONS OF COLORS. 

1. ASSOCIATION OF COMPLEMENTARY COLORS. 

This is the only association in which the colors mutu¬ 
ally improve, strengthen, and purify each other, without 
going out of their respective scales. 

This condition is so advantageous to the associated 
colors that the association is also satisfactory when the 
colors are not exactly complementary. 

It is the same when they are tarnished with Gray. 

Therefore this association is the best that can be 
adopted to produce harmony of contrast in painting, in 
tapestry, stained glass windows, between paper hang¬ 
ings and their borders, in furniture and clothing, and in 
flower-gardens. 

2. ASSOCIATION OF NON-COMPLEMENT ARY COLORS. 

The result of this association differs from the preced¬ 
ing in this respect—the complementary of one of the 
colors differing from the other color to which it is added, 
causes a modification of hue in the two colors, besides a 
modification of tone , if they are not taken at the same 
intensity. 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


375 


Non-complementary colors evidently produce three 
different effects when placed in contact. 

1°. They mutually improve each other. 

2°. One is improved while the other is injured. 

3°. They mutually injure each other. 

The greater the difference between the colors the 
more their association will be favorable to their mutual 
contrast; and the nearer they are alike, the greater the 
risk their association will prove injurious to their beauty. 

a. Two Non-Complementaries improve each other bp 

Association. 

Ex. Yellow and Blue are so dissimilar, that their con¬ 
trast is sufficiently great to produce a favorable associa¬ 
tion, although the associated colors belong to different 
scales of yellow and blue. 

b. One Color, placed in Contact ivith another Color 

which is not complementary to it, is improved, 
but the other is injured. 

Ex. A Blue, which is improved by yellow, being 
placed beside bluish Violet, may lose beauty by becom¬ 
ing greenish, while the orange it adds to the violet, neu¬ 
tralizing its excess of blue, improves rather than injures 
it. 

c. Two Non-Complement ary Colors mutually 
injure each other. 

Ex. A Violet and a Blue mutually injure each other, 
because the first makes the second look green, and the 
second neutralizes the blue of the violet and makes it 
look faded. 

It may happen that the colors are modified, but 
neither gain nor lose in beauty; or that one gains with- 
out the other losing, and that one neither gains nor 
loses, while the other loses. 

irr THE ASSOCIATION OF TWO COLORS OF EQUAL TONE. 

THE HEIGHT OF THE TONE MAY INFLUENCE THE 
BEAUTY OF THE ASSOCIATION. 

F.x. A deep indigo-blue, and an equally deep red. gain 
by contact: the blue by losing violet, will become pure 


376 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 


blue; the red, acquiring orange, will become brighter. 
But if we take light tones of the same scales, the blue 
may become too green to be good as a blue, and the red, 
by acquiring orange, may become too yellow to be a 
good red. 

In the association of two colors belonging to the same 
scale, or to scales nearly allied, but of tones very widely 
apart, the contrast of tone may have a favorable influ¬ 
ence upon the beauty of the light tone : 

Because, if the latter is not a pure color, its associa¬ 
tion with the deep tone brightening it, will purify what 
gray it has. 

INFLUENCE OF THE CONTIGUITY OF 
WHITE ON COLORS. 

White substances contiguous to colored substances 
appear sensibly modified when viewed together, although 
the modification may not be very apparent unless we 
are familiar with the law of contrast; but knowing this 
law, the modification may be recognized if the colors 
opposed to the white be not too deep. Thus : if red and 
white are placed in contact, the white becomes tinged 
with the complementary of red, which is green, and 
makes the red appear deeper and brighter. 

Black and white, which may be considered as com¬ 
plementary to each other, conformably to the law of 
contrast of tone, differ more when viewed in contact than 
when alone, because the effect of the white light reflected 
by the black is more or less neutralized by the light of 
the white stripe; and it is by an analogous action that 
white heightens the tone of the colors with which it is 
placed in contact. 

All the primary colors gain by association with white, 
but the resulting binary assortments are not all equally 
agreeable; the height of tone of the color has a great in¬ 
fluence upon the effect of its assortment with white , 
thus— 

Light blue and light red assort better with white than 
dark biue and dark red, because the latter present too 
great a contrast of tone. 

White placed beside a color strengthens its tone; it 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


377 


acts as if we took away from the color the white light 
that enfeebled its intensity. 

INFLUENCE OF THE CONTIGUITY OF 
BLACK ON COLORS. 

A black surface being deeper than the color with 
which it is in contact, contrast of tone must tend to 
deepen it still more, while it must tend to lower the tone 
of the contiguous color, for exactly the same reason that 
white, if in contact with it, would heighten it. 

Black surfaces appear tinted with the complementary 
of the colored light of the contiguous body; but the tint 
will be very-faint, because it is manifested upon a ground 
possessing but a feeble power of reflecting light. 

The lowering of the tone of a color in contact with 
Black is always perceptible; but it is very remarkable 
that the Black itself is weakened when the contiguous 
color is sombre, yielding a luminous complementary. 

Black may be advantageously combined not only with 
sombre colors to produce harmonies of analogy, but also 
with light and brilliant colors to produce harmonies of 
contrast, as may be seen in the works of Chinese artists. 

No assortment of the primary colors with Black is 
disagreeable, but a generic difference of harmony exists 
between these assortments, which is not presented in the 
same degree in the binary assortment of the same colors 
with white. For the splendor of the white is so domi¬ 
nant in the latter, that whatever be the difference in 
light or brilliancy observable between the different 
colors associated, there will always be harmony of con¬ 
trast. 

The deep tones of all the scales, and even of the Blue 
and Violet scales (which, strictly speaking, are not 
deep), form with Black harmonies of analogy and not 
of contrast. So also do the unbroken tones of the Red, 
Orange, Yellow, Green, and the very light tones of the 
Yiolet and Blue scales. 

The association of Black with sombre colors, as Blue 
and Yiolet, the complementaries of which, Orange and 
Greenish Yellow, are luminous, may diminish the contrast 
of tone, if the colors are in contiguity with Black, or not 


378 PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

very distant; in this case the Black loses much of its 
vigor. 

Black placed beside a color lowers its tone; it acts as 
if we added Black to the complementary of the contigu 
ous color. In some cases it impoverishes it, as in the 
case of certain yellows. 

The modifications Black patterns undergo upon dif¬ 
ferent colored grounds, are as follows : 

Upon a Red ground, they appear Dark Green. 

Upon an Orange ground, they appear Bluish-Black. 

Upon a Yellow ground, they appear Black, of a fee¬ 
ble V iolet tint, on account of the great contrast 
of tone. 

Upon a Green ground, they appear Reddish-Gray. 

Upon a Blue ground, they appear Orange-Gray. 

Upon a Violet ground, they appear Greenish Yellow 
Gray. 

INFLUENCE OF THE CONTIGUITY OF GRAY 

ON COLORS. 

Gray bodies properly selected as to height of tone, 
when contiguous to colored bodies, exhibit the phe¬ 
nomena of contrast of color more strikingly than either 
black or white substances do. 

If, instead of normal gray, we placed’a colored body in 
contact with a Gray of a complementary tint, these 
tints will be remarkably heightened by the complemen- 
taries added to them by the colored bodies. Thus, if an 
orange color be placed on a bluish-gray, this latter will 
be singularly heightened with blue, the complementary 
of orange. 

All the primary colors gain in purity and brilliancy 
by the proximity of gray ; but the effects are far from 
being similar, or even analogous to those which result 
from the proximity of the same colors with white. 
White allows each color to preserve its integrity, and 
even heightens them by contrast, and can never be 
taken for a color itself. But Gray can ; for with the 
darkest colors, as Blue and Violet, and with the deep 
tones in general, it produces associations which enter 
into analogous harmonies, while with the brilliant colors, 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


379- 


as Red, Orange, Yellow, and the light tones of Green 
thev form harmonies of contrast. Although White con- 
trasts more with the sombre colors than with the lumi¬ 
nous, there is not the same difference between White 
and these two classes of colors as there is between them 
and Gray. 

The ground as well as the interval or distance we 
make between the colored bodies, has some influence on 

f ll P flPpp t 

HARMONY OF COLORS. 

There are six distinct Harmonies of Colors, which may 
be comprised under two groups : 

FIRST GROUP.-HARMONIES OF ANALOGOUS COLORS. 

1°. Harmony of scale, proceeding from the simulta¬ 
neous view of different tones of a single scale, more or 
less approximating. 

2°. Harmony of hues, proceeding from the simulta¬ 
neous view of tones of nearly the same height, or nearly 
so, belonging to scales more or less approximating. 

3°. Harmony of a dominant colored light, proceeding 
from the simultaneous view of different colors assorted 
conformably to the law of contrast, but one of them pre¬ 
dominating, as if they were seen through a glass stained 
with a faint tone of that color. 

SECOND GROUP.—HARMONIES OF CONTRAST. 

1°. Harmony of contrast of scale, arising from two 
distinct tones of the same scale. 

2°. Harmony of contrast of hues, arising from tones 
of different heights, each belonging to contiguous scales. 

3°. Harmony of contrast of colors, arising from the 
simultaneous view of colors belonging to widely different 
scales, assorted according to the law of contrast; the 
difference in height of juxtaposed tones may also aug¬ 
ment the contrast of color. 

1. In the harmony of contrast, the complementary 
assortment is superior to every other ; the tones must, 
however, be nearly of equal intensity. 

2. The primaries grouped in pairs assort better as a 
harmony of contrast than an arrangement formed of one 


380 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

of these primaries and a binary of which that primary 
is an element, thus— 

Blue and Yellow harmonize better than Red and 
Orange, because the binary Orange contains Red 
as one of its elements. 

Red-and Blue harmonize better than Red and Violet, 
because the binary Violet contains Red as one of 
its elements. 

Yellow and Red harmonize better than Yellow and 
Orange, because the binary Orange contains bel¬ 
low as one of its elements. 

3. The assortment of red, yellow, and blue with a 
binary containing the primary, contrasts better when 
the primary is more luminous than the binary. 

Therefore, in this assortment, it is bettor for the pri¬ 
mary to be of a lower tone than the binary, thus— 

Red and Violet harmonize better than Blue and 
Violet. 

Yellow and Orange harmonize better than Red and 
Orange. 

Yellow and Green harmonize better than Blue and 
Green. 

4. When two colors do not look well together, sepa¬ 
rate them with white. It is better for the white to be 
placed between each color than between every two 
colors. 

5. Black never produces a bad effect when placed be¬ 
tween two luminous colors, and is, therefore, often pre¬ 
ferable to white for separating colors from each other, 
thus— 

Red and Orange do not go well together, but if sep¬ 
arated by black an agreeable and harmonious 
effect is produced. 

6. Black harmonizes with sombre colors, Blue and 
Violet, and with broken tones of luminous colors pro¬ 
duces harmony of analogy sometimes with a good effect. 

7. Black does not associate so well with a luminous 
and a sombre color, as it does with two luminous colors. 

In all the following assortments Black is inferior to 
White. 

Red and Blue, Orange and Blue. 


HARMONY OF COLORS. 


381 


Tied and Violet, Orange and Violet. 

Yellow and Blue, Green and Violet. 

Green and Blue. 

8. Although Gray does not produce a bad effect with 
two luminous colors, yet it is generally inferior to Black 
and to White. 

9. Gray with sombre colors and broken tones of lumi¬ 
nous colors produces harmonies of analogy, not so vigor¬ 
ous as those with black. 

It separates colors which do not assort well together. 

ON THE SELECTION OP THE KIND OF HAR¬ 
MONY FOR A GIVEN OBJECT. 

In proceeding to the selection of an assortment of 
colored objects, we have to take into consideration suita¬ 
bility or appropriateness to the object in view. 

Where the greatest brilliancy and splendor are desired, 
we resort to the contrast produced by complementary 
colors. In the selection of flowers to form a bouquet, 
or the furnishing of a palace, the principle is the same; 
we arrange the'colors so that the greatest contrast both 
in tone and in the quality of the colors employed is pro¬ 
duced. 

Any one familiar with the law of Contrast will attain 
this aim with better success, even with inferior colors, 
than another ignorant of the law could obtain with the 
most brilliant colors. 

But where the artist is free to choose, lie will consider 
the aspect of the apartment, and whether it is to be used 
by daylight or artificial light A room with a cold 
northern aspect, used in the daytime, should be furnished 
with objects of light warm tones; while in a room with 
a southern aspect, light hues of sombre colors may be 
advantageously employed. 

He must never lose sight of the effect of contrast of 
tone. Thus, in a room papered with the deep crimson 
paper so commonly employed, the tone is so deep, that 
it forms a strong contrasting background to all light- 
colored objects placed in it; but dark-colored objects 
are lost for want of relief. In such a paper, contrast ot 
color goes almost for nothing, as a blue or a green 


382 


PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNISHER. 

paper, of the same depth of tone, would produce near the 
same effect. 

In rooms that are feebly lighted, and chiefly by dif¬ 
fused daylight, light tones of sombre colors, or luminous 
colors, are preferable for covering the walls; but then 
other colored portions of the fittings should be colored 
in analogous harmony, and violent contrast avoided. 

In undertaking to apply the principles laid down by 
M. Chevreul, most persons overlook the importance of 
tone, or intensity, but which is of equal importance with 
color. A deep tone of a bright peagreen, of an orange, 
or of a red, may produce a very crude, vulgar effect, 
when light tones of the same colors would do the con¬ 
trary. 

Very pleasing effects may be produced by adopting 
the Harmony of Analogous Colors. 

Suppose a room to be furnished in blue, or red, or 
green, we may proceed with all the tones of one hue of 
green, for instance, or mingle the tones, of nearly equal 
intensity, of the various blue and yellow greens that lie 
on each side of pure green. The distribution of these 
in the room will require careful consideration, but pro¬ 
bably the most satisfactory effect will be attained by 
taking the lightest tones and brightest hues for the 
walls, and the deepest for the carpet. The color of' the 
wood for the chairs, etc., will contrast sufficiently to se¬ 
cure distinct relief. The curtains and the furniture may 
be of intermediate quality of color, and the effect will be 
greatly enchanced by the introduction of white. 

The artist must not omit to take into consideration 
the influence of form, size, and suitability, when pro¬ 
ceeding to carry out the principles of Contrast. 


INDEX 


A CCIDENTS and diseases to 
which painters and varnishers 
are liable, 349-360 
Acetate of copper, 67, 68 

of lead, colors precipitated by, 
95, 96 

Alcohol, 114, 115 

Alumina sulphate, colors precipi¬ 
tated by, 96 

Amber varnish, 121,122 
American varnish, 216 
Ancient green marble, imitating 
of, 171, 172 

Andes, L. E., receipts for com¬ 
pound colors by, 131-133 
Aniline lakes, 95-98 

preparation of, 96, 97 
Antimony orange, 48 
vermilion, 48 
Antwerp blue, 79, 80 
Apparatus and tools, 1-14 
Arnaudon’s green, 66, 67 
Arsenic orange, 57, 58 
Aureolin, 59 

Aurum mosaicum, 252, 253 
Austrian vermilion, 49 
Azure blue, 287 
Azurite, 83 

B alloons, varnish for, 332,333 

Balmain’s luminous paint, 
335-338 

Bardella, black, imitating of, 174 
Barium chloride, colors precipit¬ 
ated by, 96 
chrome, 55 
Bartlett lead, 28 
Barytes, floated, 37 
or heavy spar, 36-38 
Basket work, lacquer for, 239 
Berlin blue, 79, 80 
Bird’s-eye maple in distemper, 
163-165 
Bistre, 86 

Black, 144, 145, 310 

bardella, imitating of, 174 


Black, deep, 298 

influence of the contiguity of, 
on colors, 377, 378 

lake, 90 

pigments, 86-90 

Blow-pipe test for white lead, 33,34 
Blue, 144, 145 

luminous paint, 340 
pigments, 74-83 
rosin oil paint, 312 
stains, 178,179 

Blues for glass painting, 286-288 
Bluish green, 289 
Bolley, characteristics of white 
pigments given by, 40, 41 
Bone black, 89, 90 
brown, 85, 86 

Brass, bronze paint for, 244 
gilding of, 267 
lacquer for, 234 
process of lacquering, 237 
tinning of, 318 

works, old, to clean, for lac¬ 
quering, 236 
Brazil wood lake, 93 
Bremen blue, 71 
green, 70, 71 
Brick color, 104 
red, 132, 293 
Brilliant scarlet, 48 
Bronze, antique, 244 
paint, 243, 244 
for brass, 244 
for iron, 244 
for plaster, 243, 244 
powder for iron, size for, 244, 
245 

Bronzing, 241-245 
inlaid work, 244 
paper, leather, glass, etc., 
liquid for, 243 
steam pipes, 244 
wood, 245 
Brown, 132 

pigments, 83-86 
red, 309, 310 


(383) 






384 


INDEX. 


Brown rosin oil paint, 312 
Browns for painting on glass, 295, 
296 

Brunswick blue, 79-81 
green, 64 

greens, modern, 64-66 
Brushes, 8-10,157 

cleansing of, 154,155 
dusting, 9 
sizes of, 9 
varnish, 10 
Buff, 104, 133 
Burning-off', 348 
Burns and scalds, 356-358 
Burnt sienna, 61 
umber, 84 

f CABINET ware, carved, polish 
) for, 224, 225 
Cadmium orange, 58 
yellow, 58 
Caeruleum, 82, 83 
Cambric, painting of, to render it 
transparent, 321, 322 
Camel’s hair brushes, 9 

pencils, 213, 214 
Caoutchouc varnish, 122 
Cappagh brown, 85 
Carbon black, 89 
Card-work, varnish for, 126 
Carmine, 92 
hard, 294 
lake, 93 

Carmines and greens, flux for, 285 
Carnation, 105 

Carriage body, getting an even 
surface on the, 199 
putting the coats of 
paint on a, 201-206 
gearing and body, priming 
coat for the, 198, 199 
ornamenting and striping a, 
208-214 

putting the ornament on the 
panel of a, 209, 210 
to make a very tasty ornament 
for a, 211 

varnishing a, 206-208 
after striping, 214-219 
Carver’s polish, 222 
Caseine paint, 142-145 
paints, pure, 144 
varnish and linseed oil var¬ 
nish, paints with, 144 
medium thick, 143 
oil paints with, 144 


Caseine varnish, preparation of, 
142, 143 
thick, 143 
thin, 143 

Casselmann’s green, 71 
Cassel yellow, 55, 56 
Casts, plaster of Paris, bronzing of, 
242, 243 

Cerulean blue, 82, 83 
Chamber or German method for 
the manufacture of white lead, 
23-25 

Changing varnishes, 126, 127 
Charlton white, 36 
Cherry stain, 179 
Chestnut color, 105, 106, 133 
Chevreul’s principles of harmony 
and contrast of colors, 360-382 
Chimneys, to color the back of, 
with lead ore, 328 
China clay or kaolin, 40 
Chinese blue, 79, 80 
white, 34, 35 

Chlorine, formation of, 116, 117 
Chocolate color, 106, 133, 310 
Chromate of lead, normal, 52-54 
Chrome, barium, 55 
carmine, 50 
garnet, 50 
green, 66 
orange, 54 
vermilion, 49 
yellow, 132 

American, 53 
pure deep, 54 
lemon, 53 

zinc, 55 
Chromes, 52 
testing of, 55 
Cinnabar, 42 
Claret, 133 

Cleanliness in working, 153-155 
Clock faces, varnish for, 331 
Cloth, painting of, to render it 
transparent, 321, 322 
Cloths, linen, thickening of, for 
screens, 322 
Clove brown, 295 
Coach painting and varnishing, 
196-219 

Coaches, black varnish for, 327 
gilt stripe for, 212, 213 
Cobalt blue, 81 
green, 72 
Cobalt yellow, 59 
Colic, painter’s, 349-352 





INDEX. 


385 


Cologne earth, 85 
Color and light, analysis of, 363,364 
circumstances which modify 
a, 368, 369 
graining, 158, 159 
heightening compositions, 251, 
252 

laying on the, 147, 148 
modifications produced in a, 
by being placed in contact 
with another color, 369-372 
source of, 363, 364 
spirit, 160, 161 
type or standard of, 364 
Colors, analogous harmonies of, 
379 

binary associations of, 374-376 1 
complementary, 367, 368 
association of, 374 
compound, oils and varnishes, 
104-133 

receipts for, 131-133 
definitions of, 362, 363 
for graining and imitating 
woods and marbles, 157, 158 , 
grinding and washing of, j 
99-103 

harmony and contrast of, 
Chevreul’s principles of, 
360-382 
of, 379-381 

in contiguity, result of plac¬ 
ing, 372-374 

influence of gloss and form 
upon the effect of con¬ 
trast of two, 374 
the contiguity of black 
on, 377, 378 
gray on, 378, 
379 

white on, 376, 
377 

mixing of, 15 
mixture of, 364-367 
non-complementary, associa¬ 
tion of, 374-376 
of gold, 293, 294 
iron, 294, 295 
of objects, 367 

precipitated by acetate of 
lead, 95, 96 
alumina sul¬ 
phate, 96 
barium chlor¬ 
ide, 96 

picric acid, 95 


Colors precipitated by tannic 
acid, 95 

quantity of oil for grinding, 
7,8 

required in japanning, 246 
used in glass painting, 285, 286 
the porcelain manu- 
tory of Sevres, 
‘286-298 

vitrifiable, 284 
Coloring yellow, 256, 257 
Combs, 156,157 

Complementary colors, 367,368 
associating, 374 

Compound colors, oils and var¬ 
nishes, 104-133 
receipts for, 131-133 

Cone mill, 5 

Contrast, harmonies of, 379-381 
Copal varnish, excellent, 120 

gold colored, 118,119 
in imitation of tor¬ 
toise shell, 119,120 

Copper, 133 

acetate of, 67, 68 
foils, 278, 279 
gilding of, 267 
stannate of, 71 
tinning of, 318 
Copal varnish, 118 

camphorated, 119 
Copper vessels, tinning of, 318 
Court plaster, 323, 324 
Cracks, filling for, 344, 345 
Cream, painter’s, 313 

D arby red, 49 

Derbyshire spar, imitating of, 
174 

Diamond color, 132 
Diseases and accidents to which 
ainters and varnishers are ba¬ 
le, 349-360 
Distemper, application of varnish 
to painting in, 227, 228 
bird’s-eye maple in, 163-165 
mahogany in, 167 
painting, 137-140 
pollard and root of oak to 
grain in, 162,163 

Dove, 133 

marble, imitating of, 174 
Drab, 133 
Dragon green, 289 
Dragon’s blood, 114 
Drawings, colored, varnish for, 125 





886 


INDEX 


Drawings, gilding of, 269, 270 
varnish for, 126 
Driers, 342, 343 
Drop black, 90 
Drossing oven, 44 
Drying oils, 111, 112 
Dutch method or stack method 
for the manufacture of white 
lead, 19-23 
Dutch white, 30 


E bony stains, 179, iso 

Edge runner mill, 3-5 
Egyptian green marble, imitating 
of, 172 

Emerald green, 69, 70, 288 
Enamel, black, for wood, 342 
English red, 144,145 

rosin oil paint, 312 
white, 39, 40 
Euchrome, 85 

F AT oils, 110, 111 
Fawn, 133 
Fawn color, 106 

Ferrari, M., recommendation by, 
128 

Ferric oxide, 46 
Finishing polish, 223 
Fish oil and rosin oil paints, 
304-312 

colors, preparation of, 
306-310 

gain by the use of, 305 
preparation of, 304,305 
Fitches, 9 
Flatting, 149,150 
Flesh, 133 
color, 106 
red, 295 

Floors, lacquer for, 238 
putty for, 13 

Flowers* jonquille yellow for, 291 
Flux, 284 

for carmines and greens, 285 
gray, 285 

Fluxes, proportions of the ingre¬ 
dients of, 284, 285 
Foils, 278-282 

to color, 279-282 
Frames, regilding of, 275, 276 
Frankfort black, 90 
Freeman’s non-poisonous white 
lead, 28, 29 
Freestone, 133 


French method or wet precipita¬ 
tion process for 
the manufacture 
of white lead, 25,26 
French polish, 222, 226, 229-232 

for carved wmod in fur¬ 
niture, 223, 224 

Fresco, 150-152 
Fuchsin lake, 97 

Fuller’s earth, for removing var¬ 
nish from pictures, 347 
Furnace for firing glass paintings, 
300-302 

Furniture, French polish for 
carved wood in, 223, 224 
oil for, 330 

old, to clean and pol¬ 
ish, 229 

paste for, 329, 330 
polishing wax for, 233 

G as-black, 89 

Gentele’s green, 71 
German or chamber method for 
the manufacture of 
white lead, 23-25 
polish, 229-232 
wood filling, 344 

Gilder, principal end aimed at by 
the, 153 

Gilder’s cushion, 11 
v r ax, 258-260 
Gilding brass, 267 

carved w r ood with water size, 
261-265 

copper, 267 

glass, 267, 268, 276, 277 
leather, 268, 269 
letters on marble, 277 
lustre, to repair, 277 
materials, 251-260 
oil size for, 258 
on granite, 277 

on wood in the open air, 274, 
275 

plaster or marble with water 
size, 265 

porcelain, 267, 268 
practice of, 261-277 
signs, 276 
steel, 266, 267 
silver solution for, 260 
the edges of paper, 270 
writings, drawings, etc., on 
paper or parchment, 269,270 
wood in oil, 266 




INDEX 


387 


Glass, gilding of, 267, 268, 276, 277 
liquid for bronzing, 243 
painting, application of the 
colors in, 298,299 
blues for, 286-288 
browns for, 295, 296 
colors of gold for, 293, 
294 

of iron for, 294, 295 
used in, 285, 286 
greens for, 288, 289 
painting on, 283 

yellows for, 289-293 
paintings, firing of, 300-303 
staining, 283-303 
to write, gild and ornament 
♦ on, 194, 195 

varnish for, 123 

to preserve it from the 
rays of the sun, 325 

Glue, 314 
Gold, 133 

colors, 105 
of, 293, 294 

Dutch or German, 253 
ethereal solution of, 253-255 
green, color heightening com¬ 
position for, 252 
mosaic, 252, 253 
oil color or size, 255 
powder, true, 251 
red, color heightening compo¬ 
sition for, 252 

size, 258 
water size, 255 

yellow,color heightening com¬ 
position for,251,252 
Graining and imitating woods 
and marbles, 156-176 
color, 158, 159 
Granite, gilding on, 277 
imitating of, 175 
Grass green, 106 
Gray, bluish for mixtures, 297 
bridge, 132 
flaxen, 104 
French, 133 
grounding paint, 132 
imperial, 131 

influence of the contiguity of, 
on colors, 378, 379 

iron, 131 
light, 104 

luminous paint, 340 
pearl, 104, 131 
rosin oil paint, 312 


Gray, silver, 131 
stone, 131 

yellowish, for browns and 
reds, 297 

zinc, 131 

Grayish black for mixtures, 297 
Green, 144,145 
and red, 373 
bright, 308 
bronze, 133 
lake, 97 

luminous paint, 340 
pea, 133 
pigments, 64-73 

table of, characteris¬ 
tics of, 73 
rosin oil paint, 312 
subdued, 306, 307 

Greens and carmines, flux ft>r, 28§ 
for glass painting, 288, 289 
Griffith’s patent zinc white, 36 
Grinding and washing colors, 
99-103 

Guignet’s green, 66 
Gum arabic, 114 

elastic varnish, 122 
Senegal, 114 

Gums and resins used for var¬ 
nishes, 113 

Gun barrels, to brown, 330 
Guyemyer’s drier, 343 
Gypsum, 38, 39 

H AIR brown, 2% 

Hamburg white, 30 
Hard wood filler, 344 
Hare, Prof., colorless shellac var¬ 
nish of, 116, 117 

Harmonies of analogous colors, 

379 

contrast, 379-381 
Harmony of colors, 379-381 

selection of the kind of, for a 
given object, 381, 382 
Hatfield process of manufacturing 
white lead, 24 

Hats, old straw or chip, varnish 
for, 125 

Heavy spar or barytes, 36, 38 
Horn, imitation of tortoise-shell 
with, 324, 325 

Hugoulin’s method of preparing 
oil paints, 333-335 

tMPERIAL, green, 132 
1 Indian red. 46 



388 


INDEX. 


Indian yellow, 61, 62 
Indigo and violet, 373 
blue, 286 

Ink, printer’s, 322, 323 

spots, to take out of mahog¬ 
any, 329 

Instruments, philosophical, lac¬ 
quer for, 234, 235 
Iron, bronze paint for, 244 
bronzing of, 242 
colors of, 294, 295 
reds, 45-48 

size for bronze powder for, 
244, 245 

vessels, tinning of, 318 
work, black varnish for, 327 
Isabella yellow for grounds, 293 
Isinglass, 314 

Italian jasper, imitating of, 173 
Ivory black, 89, 90 

T APAN finishing, 247-249 
tl ground, fine tortoise-shell, 
to prepare a, 247 
Japanning, 246-250 

colors required in, 246 
imitation of, 249, 250 
Jasper, Italian, imitating of, 173 
to clean, 328 
Jonquil, 105 

Jonquille yellow for flowers, 291 

K ALSOMINE, mixing of, 345,346 
Kaolin or China clay, 40 
King’s yellow, 57 
Knotting, 345 
Kremnitz white, 30, 31 

L acquer, black, for wood, 238 
ebony, for woodwork, 239 
for basket and wicker work, 
239 

brass, 234 
floors, 238 

philosophical i n s t r u - 

ments, 234, 235 
sign painters, 238 
wall paper, 240 

gold colored for brass watch 
cases, watch 
keys, etc., 235, 
236 

of various tints, to make, 236 
red, for wood, 238, 239 
Lacquering, 234-240 
brass, process of, 237 


Lacquering, to clean old brass 
works for, 236 

Lakes, 91-98 

preparation of, 91, 92 
Lamp-black, 86-89 

furnace for the produc¬ 
tion of, 88 

materials used in the man¬ 
ufacture ol', 87 

Lavender blue for ground tint, 288 
oil of, 107 

Lead, acetate of, colors precipi¬ 
tated by, 95,96 

Bartlett, 28 
color, 105, 307, 308 
dark,106 

normal chromate of, 52-54 
orange, 45 

ore, to color the back of chim¬ 
neys with, 328 
red, or minium, 44,45 
white, 16-34 

commercial, 30 
constitution of, and theory 
of its formation, 
17, 18 

Freeman’s non-poisonous, 
28, 29 
Lewis’ , 28 

manufacture of, 18-29 
Martin’s, 27 
Milner’s, 27 
Pattinson’s, 27 
preparation of, from li¬ 
tharge, 26, 27 
properties of, 29-31 
sublimed, 28 
testing, 31-34 
Leaf green, 132 
Leather, gilding of, 268, 269 
liquid for bronzing, 243 
Lehmann's pug mill, 5, 6 
roller mill, 6, 7 
Leithner’s blue, 82 
Lemon, 133 
yellow, 105 

Letters, models for, 190 
on marble, to gild, 277 
setting out or arrangement of, 
192 

to gild, 193,194 

to raise or make appear to 
stand out from the 
board, and to shadow 
them, 192,193 
Lewis’ white lead, 28 





INDEX. 


389 


Light and color, analysis of, 363, 
364 

red, 46 

Limestone, 133 
Linseed oil, 108-110 

varnish, 118 

and caseine var¬ 
nish, paints 
with, 144 

Litharge, preparation oij white 
lead from, 26, 27 
Liver brown, 296 

Luminous paint, Balmain’s, 

335-338 

preparation of, 338 
Scliatte’s, 339-341 

M adder lake, 93,94 

Mahl-stick, 10 

Mahogany, imitation of, 341, 342 
in distemper, 167 
in oil, 167, 168 
polish, 225 
stains, 181-183 
to imitate, 106 
to take ink spots out of, 329 
Malachite, blue, 83 
Manganese brown, 85 
Maple, bird’s-eye in distemper, 
163-165 

polish for, 226 
Maple, to grain, in oil, 165 
Marble, black and gold, imitating 
Of, 170, 171 

gilding of, with water size, 265 
imitation, to polish, 176 
to clean, 328 
to gild letters on, 277 
Marbles and woods, graining and 
imitating of, 156-176 
principal, 169 
Mars orange, 61 
Martin’s white lead, 27 
Mastic varnish, 122,123 
Mercuric sulphide, 42 
Milk, painting in, 140-142 

paint, preparation of, 140,141 
Mill, cone, 5 

edge runner, 3-5 
Millner’s white lead, 27 
Mills, mixing or pug, 5, 6 
roller, 6, 7 

Mineral green, 68, 69 
white, 39 

Minium or red lead, 44, 45 
red, 132 


Mixing or pug mills, 5, 6 
Montpelier yellow, 55, 56 
Mordant varnishes, 127, 128 
Mosaic gold, 252, 253 
Moulding, composition for, 257,258 
Mountain blue, 83 
Muller, 2 

grinding colors with the, 99, 
100 

]\T ANKIN yellow, deep, 292 
1\ for grounds, 292 

Naples yellow, 56, 57 
Nausea, 356 
Nut oil, 108-110 

O AK color, 132 

imitating of, 156-161 
pollard and root of, to grain in 
distemper, 162, 163 
imitating of, 161 
root of, imitating of, 162 
stains, 183 
wood colors, 104 
Ochre, 144, 145 

brown yellow, 292 
orange, 61 
Oxford, 60 
pale yellow, 292 
Spanish, 61 
stone, 60 

yellow, 59, 60,132 

called yellow brown, 
292 

Oil and paint, mixing the, for 
striping, 212 

boiled, disadvantages of, 196- 
198 

use of, in carriage 
painting, 196 
cloth, making of, 319-321 
drier, oxidized, 343 
gold on wood, 270-27^ 
linseed, 108-110 
nut, 108-110 
of lavender, 107 
of poppies, 107 
of spike, 107 
of turpentine, 110 
painting, cleaning and restor¬ 
ing works in, 346 
paints, Hugoulin’s method ot 
preparing, 333-335 
paints with caseine varnish, 
144 

pilchard, 112,113 



390 


INDEX. 


Oil, quantity of, for grinding col¬ 
ors, 7, 8 

raw, advantages of, 198 

preparation of, for use, 198 
used in painting, preparation 
of the, 196 

Oils, 107-113 

drying, 111, 112 
fat, 110, 111 

varnishes and compound col¬ 
ors, 104-133 

Olive, 133 
color, 105 
green, 289 
Orange, 133 

and blue, 373 

and yellow pigments, 52-63 

table of char¬ 
acteristics 
of, 63 

antimony, 48 
arsenic, 57, 58 
cadmium, 58 
carmine, 94 
chrome, 54 
color, 105 
lake, 94 
lead,45 

luminous paint, 339, 340 
Mars, 61 
ochre, 61 
with green, 372 
red, 372 
yellow, 373 

yellow for grounds, 293 
Ornamenting and striping a car¬ 
riage, -208-214 
Orr’s white enamel, 36 
Oxford ochre, 60 
Oxidized oil drier, 343 
Ozouf’s method of manufacturing 
white lead, 26 


P AINT and oil, mixing the, for 
striping, 212 

Balmain’s luminous, 335-338 
bronze, 243, 244 
caseine, 142-145 
for vessels, sub-marine works, 
etc., 341 
gray grounding, 132 
luminous, preparation of, 338 
milk, preparation of, 140, 141 
removing of, from woodwork, 
348 


Paint, Schatte’s luminous, 339-341 
to prevent, from crawling, 207 
Painter, principal end aimed at 
by the, 153 

Painters, accidents and diseases 
of, 349-360 
colic, 349-352 
cream, 313 
driers, 343 

Painting, effects of poisonous sub¬ 
stances used in, 
353-356 

in distemper. 137-140- 
in milk, 140-142 
inside, white for, 328, 329 
work, 136, 137 
out-door work, 134-136 
practice of, 134-152 
rules for, 146-149 
zinc to prepare for, 343 
Paints, fish oil and rosin oil, 304- 
312 

mixing or thinning, 8 
preparation of, 1 
pure caseine, 144 
rosin oil, 310-312 

receipts for, 311, 312 
silicate, 145,146 
with linseed oil varnish and 
caseine varnish, 
144 

Palette, 10 

knife, 10,11 

Paling, varnishes for. 124, 125 
Paper, gilding the edges of, 270 
liquid for bronzing, 243 
Paris white, 39, 40 
Patent driers, 342 
Pattinson’s white lead, 27 
Peach, 133 
Pearl, 133 

Pencils, camel’s hair, 213, 214 
cleansing of, 154,155 
Permanent white or blanc fix, 37 
Picric acid, colors precipitated by, 
95 

Pictures, removing varnish from, 
346, 347 

to clean, 330, 331 
Pigment, grinding of, 2-5 
Pigments, 14-98 
black, 86-90 
blue, 74-83 
brown, 83-86 

good, general qualities of, 14 
green, 64-73 




INDEX 


391 


Pigments, green table of charac¬ 
teristics of, 73 

red, 42-51 

table of characteristics 
of, 51 

used in glass painting, 283 
white, 15-41 

characteristics of, 40, 41 
yellow and orange, 52-63 

table of char¬ 
acter! sties 
of, 63 

Pilchard oil, 112,113 
Pink, 133 

Pinolin, preparation of, 310, 311 
Pistache green, 289 
Plaster, bronze paint for, 243, 244 
gilding of, with water size, 265 
of Paris, 38 

casts, bronzing of, 242, 
243 

Plessy’s green, 67 
Polish, carver’s, 222 
finishing, 223 

for carved cabinet ware, 224, 
225 

dark colored woods, 221 
maple, 226 
satinwood, 226 
Tunbridge ware goods, 221 
wainscot, 223 
wood, 224 

French, 222, 226, 229-232 

for carved wood in fur¬ 
niture, 223, 224 
German, 229-232 
mahogany, 225 
red, 225 

renovating, for fine carved 
work, 225 
varnish, 220, 221 
waterproof, 222 
white, for light woods, 223 
Polishes, 220-226 

Polishing and varnishing, prac¬ 
tice of, 227-233 

Pollard and root of oak, to grain, 
in distemper, 162,163 
oak, imitating of, 161 
Poppies, oil of, 107 
Porcelain, gilding of, 267, 268 
Porphyry, to clean, 328 
Portland stone color, 106 
Priming, 134,135 

paint used for, 146, 147 
rubbing down the, 147 


Printer’s ink, 322,323 
Prussian black, 90 
blue, 79;80 
blue, soluble, 80 
Pug or mixing mills, 5, 6 
Purple, 105, 133 
oxide, 46 
pure, 294 
Purree, 61, 62 
Putty, 12-14 
facing, 13 
for floors, 13 
French,13 

hard, to soften, 13,14 
indestructible, 13 
lime, for wood, 13 
soft, 13 

wood and glue, 13 

T) EALGAR, 57, 58 
1A Receipts, useful, 316-348 
Red, 144, 145 

deep blood, 293 
lead or minium, 44, 45 
luminous paint, 339 
oxide, 46 
pigments, 42-51 

table of characteris¬ 
tics of, 51 

stains, 184 
Tuscan, 48, 49 
ultramarine, 78, 79 
with blue, 373 

yellow, 383 
Reds, iron, 45-48 
Regilding frames, 275, 276 
Resins and gums used for var¬ 
nishes, 113 
Rinmann’s green, 72 
Roller mills, 6, 7 

Root of oak and pollard, to grain, 
in distemper, 162, 
163 

imitating of, 162 

Rose, 133 

Rosewood, black, imitation of, 
326 327 

imitating of, 168, 325, 326 
stains, 184 

Rosin oil and fish oil paints, 304- 
312 

paints, 310-312 

receipts for, 311, 312 
preparation of, 310, 311 
Rotten stone, 313, 314 
Rouge, 46 



392 


INDEX. 


Rouge roi, imitating of, 172,173 
Rough-stuffing, 200, 201 
Royal red, imitating of, 172,173 
reds and vermilionettes, 97,98 
Rubbing varnish, 214,218, 219 

S AIL cloth, painting of, 319 

Saint Ann’s marble, imitating 
of, 171 

Sandstone, 133 
Sap green, 72 

Sarcenet, painting of, to render it 
transparent, 321, 322 
Sash tools, 9 
Satin white, 39 

wood, imitating of, 106, 107, 
166, 167 
polish for, 226 
Scagliola, 152 
Scalds and burns, 356-358 
Scarlet, brilliant, 48 
lake, 97 
red, 46 

Schatte’s luminous paint, 339-341 
Scheele’s green, 68, 69 
Schnitzer’s green, 67 
Schweinfurth green, 69, 70 
Screens, thickening of linen cloths 
for, 322 

Sepia, 85 

brown, 296 

Sevres, colors used in the porce¬ 
lain manufactory of, 286-298 
Shellac varnish, 116, 117 
red, 117 

rubbing down of, 
228 

Sienna, 60, 61 

marble, imitating of, 169,170 
to clean, 328 

Sign painters, lacquer for, 238 
writing, instructions for, 190- 
195 

Signs, gilding of, 276 
Silicate paints, 145, 146 
Silica ultramarine, 77, 78 
Silk, varnished, 321 
Silver, 104 

furniture, to clean, 327, 328 
solution for gilding, 260 
Silvering by heat, 317, 318 
Size, common, 314, 315 
from glove leather, 315 
gold, 258 

water, 255 
oil, for gilding, 258 


Size or gold oil color, 255 
preparatory, 255,256 
Sky blue, for the browns, 287 
Slab, 1, 2 

Sleighs, gilt stripe for, 212, 213 
Smalt, 81, 82 
Snuff, 133 

Soda ultramarine, 76, 77 
Sole leather fine grained, use of, in 
smoothing, 199 
Soluble blue, 79, 80 
Spanish ochre, 61 
white, 39, 40 

Spar, Derbyshire, imitating of, 174 
Spike, oil of, 107 
Spirit color, 160, 161 
Spirits of turpentine, 115 
wine, 114, 115 

common, to in- 
crease the 
strength of, 316, 
317 

Stack or Dutch method for the 
manufacture of white lead, 19-23 
Stain, cherry, 179 
Staining, 176-189 
Stains, blue, 178,179 
ebony, 179,180 
mahogany, 181-183 
oak,183 
red, j- 84 
rosewood, 184 
walnut, 184,185 
Stannate of copper, 71 
Steam pipes, to bronze, 244 
Steel, gilding of, 266, 267 
Sticking plaster, 323, 324 
Stone color, 106, 309 
ochre, 60 

Stopping knife, 11 
Stripe, gilt, laying on the gilt for 
a, 212, 213 

Striping and ornamenting a car¬ 
riage, 208-214 

mixing the paint and oil for, 
212 

pencils for, 213, 214 
rules for, 211, 212 
Sublimed white lead, 28 
Submarine works, paint for, 341 
Sulphate ultramarine, 75, 76 
Sulphur yellow, 290 

T ANNIC acid, colors precipit¬ 
ated by, 95 
I Tannin black, 90 




INDEX. 


393 


Terra alba, 39 

tli Sienna, 60, 61 
Terre verte, 71, 72 
Thenard’s blue, 82 

process of manufacturing 
white lead, 25, 26 
Thenius’ furnace for the produc¬ 
tion of lamp-black, 88 
Tile red, 132 

rosin oil paint, 312 
Timber color, light, 106 
Tools, 9 

and apparatus, 1-14 
for graining and imitating 
woods and marbles, 156, 
157 

Tortoise shell, copal varnish in 
imitation of, 119, 
120 

imitation of, with 
horn, 324, 325 
japan ground, fine, to 
prepare a, 247 

Tunbridge ware goods, polish for 
221 

Turkey umber, 83, 84 
Turnbull’s blue, 80 
Turner’s yellow, 55, 56 
Turpentine, oil of, 110 
spirits of, 115 
varnish, 117 
Turquoise blue, 287 
Tuscan red, 48, 49 


U LTRAMARINE, 74 

artificial, 74-79 
blue, 132 
mother, 77 
Umber, 83, 84 
burnt, 84 

United States, manufacture 
lamp-black in the, 88, S9 


of 


V ANDYKE brown, 84 

Varnish, amber, 121,122 
Varnish, American, 216 

application of, to painting in 
distemper, 227, 228 
black, for coaches and iron 
work, 327 

for old straw or chip hats, 
125 

brushes, 10 

camphorated copal, 119 
caoutchouc, 122 
caseine, preparation of, 142, 
143 


Varnish, copal, 118 

in imitation of tortoise 
shell, 119,120 
excellent copal, 120 
for balloons, 332, 333 
clock faces, 331 
colored drawings, 125 
drawings and card-work, 
126 

glass, 125 

preserving glass from the 
rays of the sun, 325 
rosin oil paint, 311 
violins, 123, 124 
gold colored copal, 118,119 
gum elastic, 122 
linseed oil, 118 
mastic, 122,123 
pan, 130 
polish, 220, 221 
red shellac, 117 
removing of, from pictures or 
fine work, 346, 347 
rubbing, 214, 218, 219 
shellac, 116, 117 

rubbing down of, 228 
testing of, 215 
to imitate the Chinese, 327 
to prevent from crawling, 207 
turpentine, 117 
wearing, 214 
white hard, 124 

Varnish el', principal end aimed at 
by the, 153 

Varnishers, accidents and dis¬ 
eases of, 349-360 

Varnishes, 113-131 
changing, 126,127 
for paling and coarse wood 
work, 124,125 

general observations on, 128- 
131 

gums and resins used for, 113 
mordant, 127, 128 
oils and compound colors, 101- 
133 

Varnishing and polishing, prac¬ 
tice of, 227-233 

effects of poisonous substances 
used in,353-356 

Venetian red, 46, 47 
white, 30 

Verd antique marble, imitating 
of, 171, 172 

Verdigris, 67, 68 

basic or common, 68 





394 


INDEX. 


Verdigris, distilled, 67, 68 
Vermeil, 257 
Vermilion, 42-44 

adulteration of, 44 
antimony, 48 
Austrian, 49 
chrome, 49 
preparation of, 42-44 
Vermilionettes and royal reds, 
97, 98 

Verona earth, 71, 72 
green, 71, 72 
yellow, 55, 56 
Vessels, paint for, 341 
Violet, 133 

and greenish yellow, 373 
blue for ground color, 288 
color, 105 
deep, 294 
lake, 94, 95 
luminous paint, 340 
ultramarine, 78 
Violins, varnish for, 123,124 
Virgin tints, 104 


W AINSCOT, paneling of, 137 
polish for, 223 
to imitate, 106 

Walkers, Parker & Co., white lead 
works of, 22, 23 
Wall paper, lacquer for, 240 
Walnut stains, 184, 185 
to imitate, 163 
tree color, 105 

Washing and grinding colors, 99- 
103 


Watch cases, brass, gold colored 
lacquer for, 235, 236 
keys, brass, gold colored lac¬ 
quer for, 23.5, 236 
Water proof polish, 222 
Wax, gilder’s, 258-260 

polishing, for furniture, 233 
yellow, 291 

fixed, 291 
Waxing, 232, 233 
Wearing varnish, 214 
Wet precipitation process, or 
French method of manufactur¬ 
ing white lead, 25, 26 
White, 144, 145, 296 
coating, 256 

influence of the contiguity of, 
on colors, 376, 377 

lead, 16-34 

commercial, 30 


White lead, constitution of, and 
theory of its forma¬ 
tion, 17, 18 

Freeman’s non-poisonous, 
28, 29 

Lewis’, 28 

manufacture of, 18-29 
Martin’s, 27 
Millner’s, 27 
Pattinson’s, 27 
preparation of, from lith¬ 
arge, 26, 27 
properties of, 29-31 
sublimed, 28 
testing, 31-34 
luminous paint, 339 
pigments, 15-41 

characteristics of, 40, 41 
rosin oil paint, 312 
Whiting, 39, 40 

Wicker work, lacquer for, 239 
Willow green, light, 106 
Wine, spirits of, 114,115 
Wood and glue putty, 13 
black enamel for, 342 
lacquer for, 238 
bronzing in, 242 
of, 245 
brown, 296 

carved, gilding of, with water 
size, 261-265 
in furniture, French 
polish for, 223, 224 
fillers, 343-345 
gilding of, in oil. 266 

on, in the open air, 
274, 275 

lime putty for, 13 
oil gold on, 270-274 
polish for, 224 

producing new colors upon, 
with known coloring 
matter, 185-189 
red lacquer for, 238, 239 
Woods and marbles, graining and 
imitating of, 156-176 
dark-colored, polish for, 221 
light, white polish for, 223 
Woodwork, coarse, varnishes for, 
124. 125 

ebony lacquer for, 239 
removing paint from, 348 
Working, cleanliness in, 153-155 
Wrists, weakness of the, 352, 353 
Writings, gilding of, 269, 270 




INDEX, 


395 


ELLOW, 144,145, 310 

and orange pigments, 52-63 
table of 
cha rac- 
teristics 
of, 63 

brown rosin oil paint, 312 
deep, to mix with the chro¬ 
mium greens, 291 
fixed, for touches, 290 
for browns and greens, 290 
lakes, 94, 97 
luminous paint, 340 
ochre, 59, 60 

called yellow brown, 292 


Yellow ochre, pale, 292 
rosin oil paint, 312 
with blue, 373 

Yellowish brown luminous paint, 
340 

Yellows for glass painting, 289-293 

Z INC chrome, 55 
green,72 
sulphide, 36 

to prepare for painting, 343 
white, 34, 35 

Griffith’s patent, 36 
testing of, 35 
Zumatic drier, 343 

































r . 

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and Steel, etc., etc. By H. Bauerman, F. G. S., Associate of the 
Royal School of Mines. Fifth Edition, Revised and Enlarged. 
Illustrated with numerous Wood Engravings from Drawings by J. B. 
Jordan. i2mo. ....•••• $2.oc 

BAYLES.—House Drainage and Water Service: 

In Cities, Villages and Rural Neighborhoods. With Incidental Con. 
sideration of Certain Causes Affecting the Healthfulness of Dwell¬ 
ings. By James C. Bayles, Editor of “ The Iron Age ” and “ The 
Metal Worker.” With numerous illustrations. 8vo. cloth, 
BEANS.—A Treatise on Railway Curves and Location of 
Railroads: 

By E. W. Beans, C. E. Illustrated. i2mo. Tucks . $ r - 5 ° 

BECKETT.—A Rudimentary Treatise on Clocks, and Watches 
and Bells : 

By Sir Edmund Beckett, Bart., LL. D., Q. C. F. R. A. S. With 
numerous illustrations. Seventh Edition, Revised and Enlarged. 
.. $225 



4 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


BELL.—Carpentry Made Easy: 

Or, The Science and Art of Framing on a New and Improved 
System. With Specific Instructions for Building Balloon P rames, Barn 
Frames, Mi l P rames. Warehouses, Church Spires, etc. Comprising 
also a System of Bridge Building, with Bills, Estimates of Cost, and 
valuable Tables. Illustrated by forty-four plates, comprising .nearly 
200 figures. By WPlliam E. Bell, Architect and Practical Builder. 

8vo. ....•••*•• $ 5 ,OQ 

BEMROSE-Fret-Cutting and Perforated Carving: 

With fifty-three practical illustrations. By W. Bemrose, Jr. I vob 
quarto . . . . • • • • • $ 2 - 5 ° 

BEMROSE.—Manual of Buhl-work and Marquetry: 

With Practical Instructions for Learners, and ninety colored designs. 
By W. Bemrose, Jr. i vol. quarto .... $ 3 -°° 

BEMROSE.—Manual of Wood Carving: 

With Practical Illustrations for Learners of the Art, and Original and 
Selected Designs. By William Bemrose, Jr. With an Intro¬ 
duction by Llewellyn Jewitt, F. S. A., etc. With 128 illustra¬ 
tions, 4to. $ 2 o a 

BILLINGS.— Tobacco: 

Its History, Variety, Culture, Manufacture, Commerce, and Various 
Modes of Use. By E. R. Billings. Illustrated by nearly 200 
engravings. 8vo. ....•••• $3*°^ 

BIRD.—The American Practical Dyers’ Companion: 

Comprising a Description of the Principal Dye-Stuffs and Chemicals 
used in Dyeing, their Natures and Uses; Mordants, and How Made; 
with the best American, English, French and German processes for 
Bleaching and Dyeing Silk, W’ool, Cotton, Linen, Flannel, Felt. 
Dress Goods, Mixed and Hosiery Yarns, Feathers, Grass, Felt, Fur, 
Wool, and Straw Hats, Jute Yarn, Vegetable Ivory, Mats, Skins, 
Furs, Leather, etc., etc. By Wood, Aniline, and other Processes, 
together with Remarks on Finishing Agents, and Instructions in the 
Finishing of Fabrics, Substitutes for Indigo, Water-Proofing of 
Materials, Tests and Purification of Water, Manufacture of Aniline 
and other New Dye Wares, Harmonizing Colors, etc., etc.; embrac¬ 
ing in all over 800 Receipts for Colors and Shades, accompanied by 
170 Dyed Samples of Raw Materials and Fabrics. By F. J. Bird, 
Practical Dyer, Author of “ The Dyers’ Hand-Book.” Svo. $10.00 

BLINN.—A Practical Workshop Companion for Tin, Sheet- 
Iron, and Copper-plate Workers : 

Containing Rules for describing various kinds of Patterns used by 
Tin, Sheet-Iron and Copperplate Workers; Practical Geometry; 
Mensuration of Surfaces and Solids; Tables of the Weights of 
Metals, Lead-pipe, etc.; Tables of Areas and Circumference# 
of Circles; Japan, Varnishes, Lackers, Cements, Compositions, etc., 
etc. By Leroy J. Blinn, Master Mechanic. W r ith One Hundred 
and Seventy Illustrations. 121110. ..... $2.50 




HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


5 


BOOTH.—Marble Worker’s Manual: 

Containing Practical Information respecting Marbles in general, theit 
Cutting, Working and Polishing; Veneering of Marble; Mosaics; 
Composition and Use of Artificial Marble, Stuccos, Cements, Receipts, 
Secrets, etc., etc. Translated from the French by M. L. Booth. 
With an Appendix concerning American Marbles. i2mo., cloth $1.50 
BOOTH and MORFIT.—The Encyclopaedia of Chemistry, 
Practical and Theoretical; 

Embracing its application to the Arts, Metallurgy, Mineralogy, 
Geology, Medicine and Pharmacy. By James C. Booth, Melter 
and Refiner in the United States Mint, Professor of Applied Chem¬ 
istry in the Franklin Institute, etc., assisted by Campbell Morfit, 
author of “ Chemical Manipulations,” etc. Seventh Edition. Com¬ 
plete in one volume, royal 8vo., 978 pages, with numerous wood-cuts 
and other illustrations ...... , $3-5° 

BR AM WELL.—The Wool Carder’s Vade-Mecum* 

A Complete Manual of the Art of Carding Textile Fabrics. By W, 
C. Bramwell. Third Edition, revised and enlarged. Illustrated. 
Pp. 400. 121110. ........ $2.50 

BRANNT.—A Practical Treatise on Animal and Vegetable 
Fats and Oils : 

Comprising both Fixed and Volatile Oils, their Physical and Chemi¬ 
cal Properties and Uses, the Manner of Extracting and Refining 
them, and Practical Rules for Testing them ; as well as the Manu¬ 
facture of Artificial Butter, Lubricants, including Mineral Lubricating 
Oils, etc., and on Ozokerite. Edited chiefly from the German of 
Drs. Karl Schaedler, G. W. Askinson, and Richard Brunner, 
with Additions and Lists of American Patents relating to the Extrac¬ 
tion, Rendering, Refining, Decomposing, and Bleaching of Fats and 
Oils. By William T. Brannt. Illustrated by 244 engravings. 

739 pages. 8vo. $7.30 

BRANNT.—A Practical Treatise on the Manufacture of Soap 
and Candles : 

Based upon the most Recent Experiences in the Practice and Science; 
comprising the Chemistry, Raw Materials, Machinery, and Utensils 
and Various Processes of Manufacture, including a great variety of 
formulas. Edited chiefly from the German of Dr. C. Deite, A. 
Engelhardt, Dr. C. Schaedler and others; with additions and lists 
of American Patents relating to these subjects. By Wm. T. Brannt. 
Illustrated by 163 engravings. 677 pages. 8vo. . . $7.50 

BRANNT.—A Practical Treatise on the Raw Materials and the 
Distillation and Rectification of Alcohol, and the Prepara¬ 
tion of Alcoholic Liquors, Liqueurs, Cordials, Bitters, etc.; 
Edited chiefly from the German of Dr. K. Stammer, Dr. F. Eisner, 
and E. Schubert. By Wm. T. Brannt. Illustrated by thirty-one 
engravings. 121110. #2.50 



6 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


BRANNT— WAHL.— The Techno-Chemical Receipt Book: 

Containing several thousand Receipts covering the latest, most i'fa 
portant, and most useful discoveries in Chemical Technology, and 
their Practical Application in the Arts and the Industries. Edited 
chiefly from the German of Drs. Winckler, Eisner, Heintze, Mier-- 
zinski, Jacobsen, Koller, and Heinzerling, with additions by Wm. T« 
Brannt and Wm. H. Wahl, Ph. D. Illustrated by 78 engravings. 
l2rno. 495 pages ... ..... $2.00 

EROWN.—Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements: 
Embracing all those which are most important in Dynamics, Hy¬ 
draulics, Hydrostatics, Pneumatics, Steam-Engines, Mill and other 
Gearing, Presses, Horology and Miscellaneous Machinery; and in¬ 
cluding many movements never before published, and several of 
which have only recently come into use. By Henry T. Brown, 

i2mo. .......... $1.00 

BUCKMASTER.—The Elements of Mechanical Physics : 

By J. C. Buckmaster. Illustrated with numerous engravings. 
l2mo. .......... $1.00 

BULLOCK.—The American Cottage Builder : 

A Series of Designs, Plans and Specifications, from $200 to $20,000, 
for Homes for the People; together with Warming, Ventilation, 
Drainage, Painting and Landscape Gardening. By John Bullock, 
Architect and Editor of “ The Rudiments of Architecture and 
Building,” etc., etc. Illustrated by 75 engravings. 8vo. $ 3-59 

BULLOCK.—The Rudiments of Architecture and Building: 
For the use of Architects, Builders, Draughtsmen, Machinists, En¬ 
gineers and Mechanics. Edited by John Bullock, author of “ The 
American Cottage Builder.” Illustrated by 250 Engravings. 8vo. $3.50 
BURGH.—Practical Rules for the Proportions of Modern 
Engines and Boilers for Land and Marine Purposes. 

By N. P. Burgh, Engineer. i2mo. .... $1.50 

BYLES.—Sophisms of Free Trade and Popular Political 
Economy Examined. 

By a Barrister (Sir John Barnard Byles, Judge of Common 
Pleas). From the Ninth English Edition, as published by the 
Manchester Reciprocity Association. i2mo. . . , $1.25 

BOWMAN.—The Structure of the Wool Fibre in its Relation 
to the Use of Wool for Technical Purposes: 

Being the substance, with additions, of Five Lectures, delivered at 
the request of the Council, to the members of the Bradford Technical 
College, and the Society of Dyers and Colorists. By F. H. Bow¬ 
man, D. Sc., P. R. S. E., f. L. S. Illustrated by 32 engravings. 

^ vo ‘ . $6.50 

BYRNE.—Hand-Book for the Artisan, Mechanic, and Engi¬ 
neer : 

Comprising the Grinding and Sharpening of Cutting Tools, Abia-ive 
Processes, Lapidary Work, Gem and Glass Engraving, Varnishing 
and Lackering, Apparatus, Materials and Processes for Grinding and 





HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


7 


Polishing, etc. By Oliver Byrne. Illustrated by 185 wood en¬ 
gravings. 8vo. $ 15.00 

BYRNE.—Pocket-Book for Railroad and Civil Engineers: 
Containing New, Exact and Concise Methods for Laying out Railroad 
Curves, Switches, Frog Angles and Crossings; the Staking out of 
work; Levelling; the Calculation of Cuttings; Embankments; Earth¬ 
work, etc. By Oliver Byrne. i8mo., full bound, pocket-book 
form .......... $1.75 

BYRNE.—Tne Practical Metal-Worker’s Assistant: d 

Comprising Metallurgic Chemistry; the Arts of Working all Metals 
and Alloys ; Forging of Iron and Steel; Hardening and Tempering; 
Melting and Mixing; Casting and Founding ; Works in Sheet Metal; 
the Processes Dependent on the Ductility of the Metals; Soldering; 
and the most Improved Processes and Tools employed by Metal- 
Workers. With the Application of the Art of Electro-Metallurgy to 
Manufacturing Processes; collected from Original Sources, and from 
the works of Holtzapffel, Bergeron, Leupold, Plumier, Napier, 
Scoffern, Clay, Fairbairn and others. By Oliver Byrne. A new, 
revised and improved edition, to which is added an Appendix, con¬ 
taining The Manufacture of Russian Sheet-Iron. By John Percy, 
M. D., F. R. S. The Manufacture of Malleable Iron Castings, and 
Improvements in Bessemer Steel. By A. A. Fesquet, Chemist and 
Engineer. With over Six Hundred Engravings, Illustrating every 
Branch of the Subject. 8vo. ...... #5.00 

BYRNE.—The Practical Model Calculator: 

For the Engineer, Mechanic, Manufacturer of Engine Work, Naval 
Architect, Miner and Millwright. By Oliver Byrne. 8vo., nearly 
600 pages ......... #3.00 

CABINET MAKER’S ALBUM OF FURNITURE: 
Comprising a Collection of Designs for various Styles of Furniture. 
Illustrated by Forty-eight Large and Beautifully Engrav ed Plates. 

Oblong, 8vo. ........ $2.00 

CALLINGHAM.—Sign Writing and Glass Embossing: 

A Complete Practical Illustrated Manual of the Art. By James 

Callingham. i2mo.$1.50 

CAMPIN.—A Practical Treatise on Mechanical Engineering: 
Comprising Metallurgy, Moulding, Casting, Forging, Tools, Work¬ 
shop Machinery, Mechanical Manipulation, Manufacture of Steam- 
Engines, etc. With an Appendix on the Analysis of Iron and Iron 
Ores. By Francis Campin, C. E. To which are added, Observations 
on the Construction of Steam Boilers, and Remarks upon Furnaces 
used for Smoke Prevention; with a Chapter on Explosions. By R. 
Armstrong, C. E., and John Bourne. Rules for Calculating th« 
Change Wheels for Screws on a Turning Lathe, and for a Wheel*/ 
cutting Machine. By J. La Nicca. Management of Steel, Includ¬ 
ing Forging, Hardening, Tempering, Annealing, Shrinking an d 
Expansion ; and the Case-hardening of Iron. By G. Ede. 8vo. 
Illustrated with twenty-nine plates and 100 wood engravings $5.00 







HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


5 


CAREY.—A Memoir of Henry C. Carey. 

By Dr. Wm. Elder. With a portrait. 8vo., cloth . . 75 

CAREY.—The Works of Henry C. Carey : 

Harmony of Interests : Agricultural, Manufacturing and Commer. 

cial. 8vo. ..... . . $1.25 

Manual of Social Science. Condensed from Carey’s “ Principles 
of Social Science.” By Kate McKean, i vol. i2mo. . $2.00 

Miscellaneous Works. With a Portrait. 2 vols. 8vo. $10.00 

Past, Present and Future. 8vo.$2.50 

Principles of Social Science. 3 volumes, 8vo. . . $7.50 

The Slave-Trade, Domestic and Foreign; Why it Exists, and 
How it may be Extinguished (1853). 8vo. . . . $2.00 

The Unity of Law: As Exhibited in the Relations of Physical, 
Social, Mental and Moral Science (1872). 8vo. . . $2.50 

CLARK.—Tramways, their Construction and Working: 

Embracing a Comprehensive History of the System. With an ex' 
haustive analysis of the various modes of traction, including horse¬ 
power, steam, heated water and compressed air; a description of the 
varieties of Rolling stock, and ample details of cost and working ex¬ 
penses. By D. Kinnear Clark. Illustrated by over 200 wood 
engravings, and thirteen folding plates. 2 vols. 8vo. . $12.50 

COLBURN. —The Locomotive Engine : 

Including a Description of its Structure, Rules for Estimating its 
Capabilities, and Practical Observations on its Construction and Man¬ 
agement. By Zerah Colburn. Illustrated. i2mo. . $1.00 

COLLENS.—The Eden of Labor; or, the Christian Utopia. 

By T. Wharton Collens, author of “ Humanics,” “The History 
of Charity,” etc. i2mo. Paper cover, $1.00 ; Cloth . $1.25 

COOLEY.—A Complete Practical Treatise on Perfumery: 

Being a Hand-book of Perfumes, Cosmetics and other Toilet Articles. 
With a Comprehensive Collection of Formulae. By Arnold J. 
Cooley. i2mo. ........ $1.50 

COOPER.—A Treatise on the use of Belting for the Trans¬ 
mission of Power. 

With numerous illustrations of approved and actual methods of ar¬ 
ranging Main Driving and Quarter Twist Belts, and of Belt Fasten 
ings. Examples and Rules in great number for exhibiting and cal¬ 
culating the size and driving power of Belts. Plain, Particular and 
Practical Directions for the Treatment, Care and Management o r 
Belts. Descriptions of many varieties of Beltings, together witn 
chapters on the Transmission of Power by Ropes; by Iron and 
Wood Frictional Gearing; on the Strength of Belting Leather; and 
on the Experimental Investigations of Morin, Briggs, and others. By 

John H. Cooper, M. E. 8vo .$3.50 

CRAIK.—The Practical American Millwright and MUler. 

By David Craik, ^Millwright. Illustrated by numerous wood eiv* 
gravings and two folding plates. 8vo. .... $3.50 





HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


9 


CREW.—A Practical Treatise on Petroleum : 

Comprising its Origin, Geology, Geographical Distribution, History, 
Chemistry, Mining, Technology, Uses and Transportation. Together 
with a Description of Gas Wells, the Application of Gas as Fuel, etc. 
By Benjamin J. Crew. With an Appendix on the Product and 
Exhaustion of the Oil Regions, and the Geology of Natural Gas in 
Pennsylvania and New York. By Charles A. Ashburner, M. S., 
Geologist in Charge Pennsylvania Survey, Philadelphia Illustrated 
by 70 engravings. 8vo. 508 pages .... $$.00 

CROSS.—The Cotton Yarn Spinner: 

Showing how the Preparation should be arranged for Different 
Counts of Yarns by a System more uniform than has hitherto been 
practiced; by having a Standard Schedule from which we make all 
our Changes. By Richard Cross. 122 pp. i2mo. . 75 

CRISTIANI.—-A Technical Treatise on Soap and Candles: 

With a Glance at the Industry of Fats and Oils. By R. S. Cris- 
TlANl, Chemist. Author of “ Perfumery and Kindred Arts.” Illus¬ 
trated by 176 engravings. 581 pages, 8vo. . . . $15.00 

CRISTIANI.—Perfumery and Kindred Arts : 

A Comprehensive Treatise on Perfumery, containing a History of 
Perfumes from the remotest ages to the present time. A complete de¬ 
tailed description of the various Materials and Apparatus used in the 
Perfumer’s Art, with thorough Practical Instruction and careful For¬ 
mulae, and advice for the fabrication of all known preparations of 
the day. By R. S. CRISTIANI, Consulting Chemist and Perfumer, 
Philadelphia. 8vo. ....... $10.00 

COAL AND METAL MINERS’ POCKET BOOK: 

Of Principles, Rules, Formulae, and Tables, Specially Compiled 
and Prepared for the Convenient Use of Mine Officials, Mining En¬ 
gineers, and Students preparing themselves for Certificates of Compe¬ 
tency as Mine Inspectors or Mine Foremen. Revised and Enlarged 
edition. Illustrated, 565 pages, small i2mo., cloth . $2.00 

Pocket book form, flexible leather with flap . . $2.75 

DAVIDSON.—A Practical Manual of House Painting, Grain* 
ing, Marbling, and Sign-Writing: 

Containing full information on the processes of House Painting ia 
Oil and Distemper, the Formation of Letters and Practice of Sign- 
Writing, the Principles of Decorative Art, a Course of Elementary 
Drawing for House Painters, Writers, etc., and a Collection of Useful 
Receipts. With nine colored illustrations of Woods and MarbleSj^ 
and numerous wood engravings. By Ellis A. Davidson. i2mo. 

$3.00 

DAVIES.—A Treatise on Earthy and Other Minerals and 
Mining: 

By D. C. Davies, F. G. S., Mining Engineer, etc. Illustrated by 
76 Engravings. i2mo. t $S- oc> ‘ 



IO HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


DAVIES.—A Treatise on Metalliferous Minerals and Mining: 

By D. C. Davies, F. G. S. ; Mining Engineer, Examiner of Mines. 
Quarries and Collieries. Illustrated by 148 engravings of Geological 
Formations, Mining Operations and Machinery, drawn from the 
practice of all parts of the world. 2d Edition, i2mo., 450 pages $5.00 
DAVIES.—A Treatise on Slate and Slate Quarrying: 

Scientific, Practical and Commercial. By D. C. Davies, F. G. S., 
Mining Engineer, etc. With numerous illustrations and folding 
plates. i 3 nio.. $2.oo 

DAVIS.—A Treatise on Steam-Boiler Incrustation and Meth* 
ods for Preventing Corrosion and the Formation of Scale .’ 

By Charles T. Davis. Illustrated by 65 engravings. 8vo. 81*50 

DAVIS.—The Manufacture of Paper: 

Being a Description of the various Processes for the Fabrication, 
Coloring and Finishing of every kind of Paper, Including the Dif¬ 
ferent Raw Materials and the Methods for Determining their Values, 
the Tools, Machines and Practical Details connected with an intelli¬ 
gent and a profitable prosecution of the art, with special reference to 
the best American Practice. To which are added a History of Pa¬ 
per, complete Lists of Paper-Making Materials, List of American 
Machines, Tools and Processes used in treating the Raw Materials, 
and in Making, Coloring and Finishing Paper. By Charles T. 
Davis. Illustrated by 156 engravings. 608 pages, 8vo. $6.00 

DAVIS.—The Manufacture of Leather: 

Being a description of all of tt Processes for the Tanning, Tawing, 
Currying, Finishing and Dyeing of every kind of Leather ; including 
the various Raw Materials and the Methods for Determining their 
Values; the Tools, Machines, and all Details of Importance con¬ 
nected with an Intelligent an-d Profitable Prosecution of the Art, with 
Special Reference to the Best American Practice. To which are 
added Complete Lists of all American Patents for Materials, Pro¬ 
cesses, Tools, and Machines for Tanning, Currying, etc. By Charles 
Thomas Davis. Illustrated by 302 engravings and 12 Samples of 
Dyed Leathers. One vol., 8vo., 824 pages . . . $io.oa 

DAWIDOWSKY—BRANNT.—A Practical Treatise on the 
Raw Materials and Fabrication of Glue, Gelatine, Gelatine 
Veneers and Foils, Isinglass, Cements, Pastes, Mucilages, 
etc.: 

Based upon Actual Experience. By F. Dawidowsky, Technical 
Chemist. Translated from the German, with extensive additions, 
including a description of the most Recent American Processes, by 
William T. Brannt, Graduate of the Royal Agricultural College 
of Eldena, Prussia. 35 Engravings. i2mo. . . . 82.50 

DE GRAFF.—The Geometrical Stair-Builders* Guide: 

Being a Plain Practical System of Hand-Railing, embracing all ita 
necessary Details, and Geometrically Illustrated by twenty-two Steel 
Engravings; together with the use of the most approved principles 
of Practical Geometry. By Simon De Graff, Architect. 4t®. 

82.5c 




HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


II 


DE KONINCK—DIETZ.—A Practical Manual of Chemical 
Analysis and Assaying: 

As applied to the Manufacture of Iron from its Ores, and to Cast Iron, 
Wrought Iron, and Steel, as found in Commerce. By L. L. De 
Koninck, Dr. Sc., and E. Dietz, Engineer. Edited with Notes, by 
Robert Mallet, F. R. S., F. S. G., M. I. C. E., etc. American 
Edition, Edited with Notes and an Appendix on Iron Ores, by A. A. 
Fesquet, Chemist and Engineer. l2mo. . . . $1.50 

DUNCAN.— Practical Surveyor’s Guide: 

Containing the necessary information to make any person of comt 
mon capacity, a finished land surveyor without the aid of a teacher 
By Andrew Duncan. Revised. 72 engravings, 214 pp. i2mo. $1.50 
DUPLAIS.—A Treatise on the Manufacture and Distillation 
of Alcoholic Liquors: 

Comprising Accurate and Complete Details in Regard to Alcohol 
from Wine, Molasses, Beets, Grain, Rice, Potatoes, Sorghum, Aspho 
del, Fruits, etc.; with the Distillation and Rectification of Brandy 
Whiskey, Rum, Gin, Swiss Absinthe, etc., the Preparation of Aro¬ 
matic Waters, Volatile Oils or Essences, Sugars, Syrups, Aromatic 
Tinctures, Liqueurs, Cordial Wines, Effervescing Wines, etc., the 
Ageing of Brandy and the improvement of Spirits, with Copioiw 
Directions and Tables for Testing and Reducing Spirituous Liquors, 
etc., etc. Translated and Edited from the French of MM. Duplais, 
Aine et Jeune. By M. McKennie, M. D. To which are added the 
United States Internal Revenue Regulations for the Assessment and 
Collection of Taxes on Distilled Spirits. Illustrated by fourteen 
folding plates and several wood engravings. 743 pp. 8vo. $10 00 
USSAUCE.—Practical Treatise on the Fabrication of Matches, 
Gun Cotton, and Fulminating Powder. 

By Professor H. Dussauce. i2mo. . . . . $3 00 

DYER AND COLOR-MAKER’S COMPANION: 

Containing upwards of two hundred Receipts for making Colors, on 
the most approved principles, for all the various styles and fabrics now 
in existence; with the Scouring Process, and plain Directions for 
Preparing, Washing-off, and Finishing the Goods. i2mo. $1.00 
EDWARDS.—A Catechism of the Marine Steam-Engine, 

For the use of Engineers, Firemen, and Mechanics. A Practical 
Work for Practical Men. By Emory Edwards, Mechanical Engi¬ 
neer. Illustrated by sixty-three Engravings, including examples of 
the most modern Engines. Third edition, thoroughly revised, with 
much additional matter. 12 mo. 414 pages . . . $2 00 

EDWARDS.—Modern American Locomotive Engines, 

Their Design, Construction and Management. By Emory Edwards, 
Illustrated i2mo. ........ $2.00 

EDWARDS.—The American Steam Engineer: 

Theoretical and Practical, with examples of the latest and most ap¬ 
proved American practice in the design and construction of Steam 
Engines and Boilers. For the use of engineers, machinists, boiler¬ 
makers, and engineering students. By Emory Edwards. Fully 
illustrated, 419 pages. 121110. • $2.50 






12 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


EDWARDS.—Modern American Marine Engines, Boilers, afl 4 
Screw Propellers, 

Their Design and Construction. Showing the Present Practice of 
the most Eminent Engineers and Marine Engine Builders in the 
United States. Illustrated by 30 large and elaborate plates. 410. $5.00 
EDWARDS.—The Practical Steam Engineer’s Guide 
In the Design, Construction, and Management of American Stationary, 
Portable, and Steam Fire-Engines, Steam Pumps, Boilers, Injectors, 
Governors, Indicators, Pistons and Rings, Safety Valves and Steam 
Gauges. For the use of Engineers, Firemen, and Steam Users. By 
Emory Edwards. Illustrated by 119 engravings. 420 pages. 
121110. ; $2 50 

EISSLER.—The Metallurgy of Gold: 

A Practical Treatise on the Metallurgical Treatment of Gold-Bear¬ 
ing Ores, including the Processes of Concentration and Chlorination, 
and the Assaying, Melting, and Refining of Gold. By M. Eissler. 
With 132 Illustrations. i2mo. ..... $3.50 

EISSLER.—The Metallurgy of Silver : 

A Practical Treatise on the Amalgamation, Roasting, and Lixiviation 
of Silver Ores, including the Assaying, Melting, and Refining of 
Silver Bullion. By M. Eissler. 124 Illustrations. 336 pp. 
i2mo. .......... $4.25 

ELDER.—Conversations on the Principal Subjects of Political 
Economy. 

By Dr. William Elder. 8vo.$2.50 

ELDER.—Questions of the Day, 

Economic and Social. By Dr. William Elder. 8vo. . $3.00 

ERNI.—Mineralogy Simplified. 

Easy Methods of Determining and Classifying Minerals, including 
Ores, by means of the Blow] ipe, and by Humid Chemical Analysis, 
based on Professor von Kobell’s Tables for the Determination of 
Minerals, with an Introduction to Modern Chemistry. By Henry 
Erni, A.M., M.D., Professor of Chemistry. Second Edition, rewritten, 
enlarged and improved. i2mo. ..... $3 oc 

FAIRBAIRN.—The Principles of Mechanism and Machinery 
of Transmission • 

Comprising the Principles of Mechanism, Wheels, and Pulleys, 
Strength and Proportions of Shafts, Coupling of Shafts, and Engag* 
ing and Disengaging Gear. By Sir William Fairbairn, Bart. 
C. E. Beautifully illustrated by over 150 wood-cuts. In one 
volume. i2mo ......... $2.50 

FLEMING.—Narrow Gauge Railways in America. 

A Sketch of their Rise, Progress, and Success. Valuable Statistics 
as to Grades, Curves, Weight of Rail, Locomotives, Cars, etc. By 

Howard Fleming. Illustrated, 8vo.|i 00 

FORSYTH.—Book of Designs for Headstones, Mural, and 
othtr Monuments: 

Containing 78 Designs. By James Forsyth. With an Introduction 
by Charles Boutell, M. A. 4 to., cloth . . - #5 00 






HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. *3 


FRANKEL—HUTTER.—A Practical Treatise on the Manu* 
facture of Starch, Glucose, Starch-Sugar, and Dextrine: 

Based on the German of Ladislaus Von Wagner, Professor in the 
Royal Technical High School, Buda-Pest, Hungary, and other 
authorities. By Julius Frankel, Graduate of the Polytechnic 
School of Hanover. Edited by Robert Hutter, Chemist, Practical 
Manufacturer of Starch-Sugar. Illustrated by 58 engravings, cover¬ 
ing every branch of the subject, including examples of the most 
Recent and Best American Machinery. 8vo., 344 pp. . #3.50 

GARDNER.—The Painter’s Encyclopaedia: 

Containing Definitions of all Important Words in the Art of Plain 
and Artistic Painting, with Details of Practice in Coach, Carriage, 
Railway Car, House, Sign, and Ornamental Painting, including 
Graining, Marbling, Staining, Varnishing, Polishing, Lettering, 
Stenciling, Gilding, Bronzing, etc. By Franklin B. Gardner. 
158 Illustrations. i2mo. 427 pp. ..... $2.oc 

GARDNER.—Everybody’s Paint Book: 

A Complete Guide to the Art of Outdoor and Indoor Painting, De¬ 
signed for the Special Use of those who wish to do their own work, 
and consisting of Practical Lessons in Plain Painting, Varnishing, 
Polishing, Staining, Paocr Hanging, Kalsomining, etc., as well as 
Directions for Renovating Furniture, and Hints on Artistic Work for 
Home Decoration. 38 Illustrations. 121110., 183 pp. . $1.00 

GEE.—The Goldsmith’s Handbook: 

Containing full instructions for the Alloying and Working of Gold, 
including the Art of Alloying, Melting, Reducing, Coloring, Col¬ 
lecting, and Refining; the Processes of Manipulation, Recovery of 
Waste; Chemical and Physical Properties of Gold; with a New 
System of Mixing its Alloys; Solders, Enamels, and other Useful 
Rules and Recipes. By George E. Gee. i2mo. e . $1.75 

GEE.—The Silversmith’s Handbook : 

Containing full instructions for the Alloying and Working of Silver, 
including the different modes of Refining and Melting the Metal; its 
Solders; the Preparation of Imitation Alloys; Methods of Manipula¬ 
tion ; Prevention of Waste ; Instructions for Improving and Finishing 
the Surface of the Work ; together with other Useful Information and 
Memoranda. By George E. Gee. Illustrated. i2mo. #1.75 

GOTHIC ALBUM FOR CABINET-MAKERS: 

Designs for Gothic Furniture. Twenty-three plates. Oblong $2.00 

GRANT.—A Handbook on the Teeth of Gears : 

Their Curves, Properties, and Practical Construction. By George 
B. Grant. Illustrated. Third Edition, enlarged. 8vo. $100 

GREENWOOD.—Steel and Iron: 

Comprising the Practice and Theory of the Several Methods Pur¬ 
sued in their Manufacture, and of their Treatment in the Rolling- 
Mills, the Forge, and the Foundry. By William Henry Green¬ 
wood, F. C. S. With 97 Diagrams, 536 pages. i2mo. $ 2.00 



14 HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


GREGORY.—Mathematics for Practical Men : 

Adapted to the Pursuits of Surveyors, Architects, Mechanics, and 
Civil Engineers. By Olinthus Gregory. 8vo., plates $ 3 ,oa 

GRISWOLD.—Railroad Engineer’s Pocket Companion for the 
Field: 

Comprising Rules for Calculating Deflection Distances and Angles, 
Tangential Distances and Angles, and all Necessary Tables for En 
gineers; also the Art of Levelling from Preliminary Survey to the 
Construction of Railroads, intended Expressly for the Young En¬ 
gineer, together with Numerous Valuable Rules and Examples. By 
W. Griswold. i2mo., tucks . • • • $i -75 

GRUNER.—Studies of Blast Furnace Phenomena: 

By M. L. Gruner, President of the General Council of Mines ol 
France, and lately Professor of Metallurgy at the Ecole des Mines. 
Translated, with the author’s sanction, with an Appendix, by L. D. 
B. Gordon, F. R. S. E., F. G. S. 8vo. . . . #2.50 

Hand-Book of Useful Tables for the Lumberman, Farmer and 
Mechanic: 

Containing Accurate Tables of Logs Reduced to Inch Board Meas* 
ure, Plank, Scantling and Timber Measure; Wages and Rent, by 
Week or Month; Capacity of Granaries, Bins and Cisterns; Land 
Measure, Interest Tables, with Directions for Finding the Interest on 
any sum at 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 per cent., and many other Useful Tables. 
32 mo., boards. 186 pages ...... .25 

IIASERICK.—The Secrets of the Art of Dyeing Wool, Cotton, 
and Linen, 

Including Bleaching and Coloring Wool and Cotton Hosiery and 
Random Yarns. A Treatise based on Economy and Practice. By 
E. C. Haserick. Illustrated by 323 Dyed Patterns of the Yarm 
or Fabrics. 8vo. ........ $ 7-50 

HATS AND FELTING: 

A Practical Treatise on their Manufacture. By a Practical Hatter. 
Illustrated by Drawings of Machinery, etc. 8 vo. . . $1.25 

HOFFER.—A Practical Treatise on Caoutchouc and Gutta 
Percha, 

Comprising the Properties of the Raw Materials, and the manner o i 
Mixing and Working them; with the Fabrication of Vulcanized and 
Hard Rubbers, Caoutchouc and Gutta Percha Compositions, Water¬ 
proof Substances, Elastic Tissues, the Utilization of Waste, etc., etc, 
From the German of Raimund Hoffer. By W. T. Brannt. 
Illustrated i2mo. . ..$2.50 

HAUPT.—Street Railway Motors: 

With Descriptions and Cost of Plants and Operation of the Various 
Systems now in Use. i2mo. . . . . . $1-75 






HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. ?5 


HAUPT—RHAWN.—A Move for Better Roads: 

Essays on Road-making and Maintenance and Road Laws, for 
which Prizes or Honorable Mention were Awarded through the 
University of Pennsylvania by a Committee of Citizens of Philadel¬ 
phia, with a Synopsis of other Contributions and a Review by the 
Secretary, Lewis M. Haupt, A. M., C. E.; also an Introduction by 
William H. Rhawn, Chairman of the Committee. 319 pages. 
Svo. • •••••»... $2.00 

HUGHES.—American Miller and Millwright’s Assistant: 

By William Carter Hughes. i2mo.$1.50 

HULME.—Worked Examination Questions in Plane Geomet ¬ 
rical Drawing : 

For the Use of Candidates for the Royal Military Academy, Wool¬ 
wich; the Royal Military College, Sandhurst; the Indian Civil En¬ 
gineering College, Cooper’s Hill ; Indian Public Works and Tele¬ 
graph Departments; Royal Marine Light Infantry; the Oxford and 
Cambridge Local Examinations, etc. By F. Edward Hulme, F. L. 
S., F. S. A., Art-Master Marlborough College. Illustrated by 300 
examples. Small quarto ...... $2.50 

JERVIS.—Railroad Property: 

A Treatise on the Construction and Management of Railways; 
designed to afford useful knowledge, in the popular style, to the 
holders of this class of property ; as well as Railway Managers, Offi¬ 
cers, and Agents. By John B. Jervis, late Civil Engineer of the 
Hudson River Railroad, Croton Aqueduct, etc. i2mo., cloth $2.oc 
KEENE.—A Hand-Book of Practical Gauging: 

For the Use of Beginners, to which is added a Chapter on Distilla¬ 
tion, describing the process in operation at the Custom-House for 
ascertaining the Strength of Wines. By James B. Keene, of H. M. 
Customs. 8vo. ........ $1.25 

KELLEY.—Speeches, Addresses, and Letters on Industrial and 
Financial Questions: 

By Hon. William D. Kelley, M. C. 544 pages, 8vo. . $2.50 

KELLOGG.—A New Monetary System : 

The only means of Securing the respective Rights of Labor and 
Property, and of Protecting the Public from Financial Revulsions. 
By Edward Kellogg. Revised from his work on “ Labor and 
other Capital.” With numerous additions from his manuscript. 
Edited by Mary Kellogg Putnam. Fifth edition. To which 
added a Biographical Sketch of the Author. One volume, i2mo. 
Paper cover ......... $1.00 

Bound in cloth . . . m • • • • • 1 - 5 ° 

KEMLO.—Watch-Repairer’s Hand-Book: 

Being a Complete Guide to the Young Beginner, in Taking Apart, 
Putting Together, and Thoroughly Cleaning the English Lever and 
other Foreign Watches, and all American Watches. By F. Kemlo, 
Practical Watchmaker. With Illustrations. l 2 mo. . #1.25 





i6 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


KENTISH.—A Treatise on a Box of Instruments, 

And the Slide Rule; with the Theory of Trigonometry and Logs 
rithms, including Practical Geometry, Surveying, Measuring of Tim* 
ber, Cask and Malt Gauging, Heights, and Distances. By Thomas 
Kentish. In one volume. i2mo. . . . . $1.2 

KERL.—The Assayer’s Manual: 

An Abridged Treatise on the Docimastic Examination of Ores, and 
Furnace and other Artificial Products. By Bruno Kerl, Professor 
in the Royal School of Mines. Translated from the German by 
William T. Brannt. Second American edition, edited with Ex¬ 
tensive Additions by F. Lynwood Garrison, Member of the 
American Institute of Mining Engineers, etc. Illustrated by 87 en¬ 
gravings. 8vo. ........ #3.0C 

KICK.—Flour Manufacture. 

A Treatise on Milling Science and Practice. By Frederick Kick 
Imperial Regierungsrath, Professor of Mechanical Technology in the 
imperial German Polytechnic Institute, Prague. Translated from 
the second enlarged and revised edition with supplement by H. H. 
P. Powles, Assoc. Memb. Institution of Civil Engineers. Illustrated 
with 28 Plates, and 167 Wood-cuts. 367 pages. 8vo. . $10.00 

KINGZETT.—The History, Products, and Processes of the 
Alkali Trade : 

Including the most Recent Improvements. By Charles Thomas 
Kingzett, Consulting Chemist. With 23 illustrations. 8vo. $2.50 
KIRK.—The Founding of Metals : 

A Practical Treatise on the Melting of Iron, with a Description of tho 
Founding of Alloys; also, of all the Metals and Mineral Substance! 
used in the Art of Founding. Collected from original sources. By 
Edward Kirk, Practical Foundryman and Chemist. Illustrated. 

Third edition. 8vo.. $2.50 

LANDRIN.—A Treatise on Steel: 

Comprising its Theory, Metallurgy, Properties, Practical Working, 
and Use. By M. H. C. Landrin, Jr., Civil Engineer. Translated 
from the French, with Notes, by A. A. Fesquet, Chemist and En¬ 
gineer. With an Appendix on the Bessemer and the Martin Pro* 
reuses for Manufacturing Steel, from the Report of Abram S. Hewitt. 
United States Commissioner to the Universal Exposition, Paris, 1867! 
I2mo.$3*00 

LANGBEIN.—A Complete Treatise on the Electro-Deposition 

of Metals: 

Translated from the German, with Additions, by Wm. T. Brannt. 
125 illustrations. 8vo.$4.00 

LARDNER.—The Steam-Engine: 

For the Use of Beginners. Illustrated. i2mo. ... 75 

LEHNER. —The Manufacture of Ink: 

Comprising the Raw Materials, and the Preparation of Writing, 
Copying and Hektograph Inks, Safety Inks, Ink Extracts and Pow¬ 
ders, etc. Translated from the German of Sigmund Lehner, with 
additions by William T. Brannt. Illustrated. j2mo. $2.00 







HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


17 


LARKIN.—The Practical Brass and Iron Founder’s Guide: 

A Concise Treatise on Brass Founding, Moulding, the Metals and 
their Alloys, etc.; to which are added Recent Improvements in tht 
Manufacture of Iron, Steel by the Bessemer Process, etc., etc. By 
James Larkin, late Conductor of the Brass Foundry Department ia 
Reany, Neafie & Co.’s Penn Works, Philadelphia. New edition, 
revised, with extensive additions. i2mo. . . . $2.50 

LEROUX.—A Practical Treatise on the Manufacture of 
Worsteds and Carded Yarns: 

Comprising Practical Mechanics, with Rules and Calculations applied 
to Spinning; Sorting, Cleaning, and Scouring Wools; the English 
and French Methods of Combing, Drawing, and Spinning Worsteds, 
and Manufacturing Carded Yarns. Translated from the French of 
Charles Leroux, Mechanical Engineer and Superintendent of a 
Spinning-Mill, by Horatio Paine, M. D., and A. A. Fesquet, 
Chemist and Engineer. Illustrated by twelve large Plates. To which 
is added an Appendix, containing Extracts from the Reports of the 
International Jury, and of the Artisans selected by the Committee 
appointed by the Council of the Society of Arts, London, on Woolen 
and Worsted Machinery and Fabrics, as exhibited in the Paris Uni¬ 
versal Exposition, 1867. 8vo. ..... 55-00 

LEFFEL. — The Construction of Mill-Dams: 

Comprising also the Building of Race and Reservoir Embankment* 
and Head-Gates, the Measurement of Streams, Gauging of Water 
Supply, etc. By James Leffel & Co. Illustrated by 58 engravings. 

8vo..52.50 

LESLIE.—Complete Cookery: 

Directions for Cookery in its Various Branches. By Miss Leslie. 
Sixtieth thoasand. Thoroughly revised, with the addition of New 

Receipts. i2mo. ........ 5 *- 5 ° 

LE VAN.—The Steam Engine and the Indicator: 

Their Origin and Progressive Development; including the Most 
Recent Examples of Steam and Gas Motors, together with the Indi¬ 
cator, its Principles, its Utility, and its Application. By William 
Barnet Le Van. Illustrated by 205 Engravings, chiefly of Indi 
cator-Cards. 469 pp. 8vo. ...... $ 4 00 

LIEBER.—Assayer’s Guide : 

Or, Practical Directions to Assayers, Miners, and Smelters, for the 
Tests and Assays, by Heat and by Wet Processes, for the Ores of all 
the principal Metals, of Gold and Silver Coins and Alloys, and of 
Coal, etc. By Oscar M. Lieber. Revised. 283 pp. i2mo. 51.50 
Lockwood’s Dictionary of Terms: 

Used in the Practice of Mechanical Engineering, embracing those 
Current in the Drawing Office, Pattern Shop, Foundry, Fitting, Turn¬ 
ing, Smith’s and Boiler Shops, etc., etc., comprising upwards of Six* 
Thousand Definitions. Edited by a Foreman Pattern Maker, author 
<^f “Pattern Making.” 417 PP' i 2 mo. . . . $ 3 °° 




18 HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 

— — - - ■ - - _.._._ -*i i. — 

LUKIN.—Amongst Machines: 

Embracing Descriptions of the various Mechanical Appliances used 
in the Manufacture of Wood, Metai, and other Substances. i2mo. 

r $1 -75 

LUKIN.—The Boy Engineers: 

What They Did, and How They Did It. With 30 plates. f8mo. 

#i -75 

LUKIN.—The Young Mechanic : 

Practical Carpentry. Containing Directions for the Use of all kinds 
of Tools, and for Construction of Steam-Engines and Mechanical 
Models, including the Art of Turning in Wood and Metal. By John 
Lukin, Author of “The Lathe and Its Uses,” etc. Illustrated. 

i2mo.#1-75 

MAIN and BROWN.—Questions on Subjects Connected with 
the Marine Steam-Engine: 

And Examination Papers; with Hints for their Solution. By 
Thomas J. Main, Professor of Mathematics, Royal Naval College, 
and Thomas Brown, Chief Engineer, R. N. i2mo., cloth . $1.00 

MAIN and BROWN.—The Indicator and Dynamometer: 

With their Practical Applications to the Steam-Engine. By Thomas 
J. Main, M. A. F. R., Ass’t S. Professor Royal Naval College, 
Portsmouth, and Thomas Brown, Assoc. Inst. C. E., Chief Engineer 
R. N., attached to the R. N. College. Illustrated. 8vo. . $1.00 

MAIN and BROWN.—The Marine Steam-Engine. 

By Thomas J. Main, F. R. Ass’t S. Mathematical Professor at the 
Royal Naval College, Portsmouth, and Thomas Brown, Assoc. 
Inst. C. E., Chief Engineer R. N. Attached to the. Royal Naval 
College. With numerous illustrations. 8vo. 

MAKINS.—A Manual of Metallurgy: 

By George Hogarth Makins. ioo engravings. Second edition 
rewritten and much enlarged. i2mo., 592 pages . . $3-00 

MARTIN.—Screw-Cutting Tables, for the Use of Mechanical 
Engineers : 

Showing the Proper Arrangement of Wheels for Cutting the Threads 
of Screws of any Required Pitch; with a Table for Making the Uni¬ 
versal Gas-Pipe Thread and Taps. By W. A. Martin, Engineer. 

8vo - • . 50 

MICHELL.—Mine Drainage: 

Being a Complete and Practical Treatise on Direct-Acting Under* 
ground Steam Pumping Machinery. With a Description of a large 
number of the best known Engines, their General Utility and the 
Special Sphere of their Action, the Mode of their Application, and 
their Merits compared with other Pumping Machinery. By STEPHEN 
Michell. Illustrated by 137 engravings. 8vo., 277 pages . $6.00 

MOLESWORTH.—Pocket-Book of Useful Formulae and 
Memoranda for Civil and Mechanical Engineers. 

By Guilford L. Molesworth, Member of the Institution of Civil 
Engineers, Chief Resident Engineer of the Ceylon Railway. Full- 
bound in Pocket-book form * • , • . * jfrj -C K 





HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.'S CATALOGUE. 


19 


MOORE.—The Universal Assistant and the Complete Me« 
chanic: 

Containing over one million Industrial Facts, Calculations, Receipts^ 
Processes, Trades Secrets, Rules, Business Forms, Legal Items, Etc., 
in every occupation, from the Household to the Manufactory. By 
R. Moore. Illustrated by 500 Engravings. i2mo. . $2.5cj 

MORRIS. —Easy Rules for the Measurement of Earthworks; 
By means of the Prismoidal Formula. Illustrated with Numerous 
Wood-Cuts, Problems, and Examples, and concluded by an Exten¬ 
sive Table for finding the Solidity in cubic yards from Mean Areas. 
1 he whole being adapted for convenient use by Engineers, Surveyors,. 
Contractors, and others needing Correct Measurements of Earthwork. 

By Blwood Morris, C. E. 8vo. $1.50 

MAUCHLINE.—The Mine Foreman’s Hand-Book 
Of Practical and Theoretical Information on the Opening, Venti¬ 
lating, and Working of Collieries. Questions and Answers on Prac¬ 
tical and Theoretical Coal Mining. Designed to Assist Students and 
Others in Passing Examinations for Mine Foremanships. By 
Robert Mauchline, Ex-Inspector of Mines. A New, Revised and 
Enlarged Edition. Illustrated by 114 engravings. 8vo. 337 

Pages...$ 3-75 

NAPIER.—A System of Chemistry Applied to Dyeing. 

By James Napier, F. C. S. A New and Thoroughly Revised Edi¬ 
tion. Completely brought up to the present state of the Science, 
including the Chemistry of Coal Tar Colors, by A. A. Ff.squet, 
Chemist and Engineer. With an Appendix on Dyeing and Calico 
Printing, as shown at the Universal Exposition, Paris, 1867. Illus¬ 
trated. 8vo. 422 pages ....... $3.50 

NEVILLE.—Hydraulic Tables, Coefficients, and Formulae, for 
finding the Discharge of Water from Orifices, Notches, 
Weirs, Pipes, and Rivers : 

Third Edition, with Additions, consisting of New Formulae for the 
Discharge from Tidal and Flood Sluices and Siphons; general infor¬ 
mation on Rainfall, Catchment-Basins, Drainage, Sewerage, Water 
Supply for Towns and Mill Power. By Tohn Neville, C. E. M R. 
I. A. ; Fellow’ of the Royal Geological Society of Ireland. Thich 

I2mo. .. $5-50 

NEWBERY.— Gleanings from Ornamental Art of ever y 
style: 

Drawn from Examples in the British, South Kensington, Indian, 
Crystal Palace, and other Museums, the Exhibitions of 1851 and 
1862, and the best English and Foreign works. In a series of loo 
exquisitely drawn Plates, containing many hundred examples. By 

Robert Nevvbery. 4to.. $12.50 

NICHOLLS.— The Theoretical and Practical Boiler-Maker and 
Engineer’s Reference Book: 

Containing a variety of Useful Information for Employers of Labor. 
Foremen and Working Boiler-Makers, Iron, Copper, and Tinsmith* 







20 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD Sc CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


Draughtsmen, Engineers, the General Steam-using Public, and for th« 
Use of Science Schools and Classes. By Samuel Nicholls. Illus¬ 
trated by sixteen plates, l2mo. ..... $2.5 Q 

NICHOLSON.—A Manual of the Art of Bookbinding: 

Containing full instructions in the different Branches of Forwarding, 
Gilding, and Finishing. Also, the Art of Marbling Book-edges and 
Paper. By James B. Nicholson. Illustrated. i2mo., cloth $2.25 
NICOLLS.—The Railway Builder: 

A Hand-Book for Estimating the Probable Cost of American Rail* 
way Construction and Equipment. By William J. NlCOLLS, Civil 
Engineer. Illustrated, full bound, pocket-book form . $2.00 

NORMANDY.—The Commercial Handbook of Chemical An¬ 
alysis : 

Or Practical Instructions for the Determination of the Intrinsic ot 
Commercial Value of Substances used in Manufactures, in Trades, 
and in the Arts. By A. Normandy. New Edition, Enlarged, and 
to a great extent rewritten. By Henry M. Noad, Ph.D., F.R.S., 

thick i2mo.$5.00 

NORRIS.—A Handbook for Locomotive Engineers and Ma¬ 
chinists: 

Comprising the Proportions and Calculations for Constructing Loco¬ 
motives; Manner of Setting Valves; Tables of Squares, Cubes, Areas, 
etc., etc. By Septimus Norris, M. E. New edition. Illustrated, 

l2mo. ..^1.50 

NYSTROM.—A New Treatise on Elements of Mechanics : 
Establishing Strict Precision in the Meaning of Dynamical Terms: 
accompanied with an Appendix on Duodenal Arithmetic and Me¬ 
trology. By John W. Nystrom, C. E. Illustrated. 8vo. $2.00 
NYSTROM.—On Technological Education and the Construc¬ 
tion of Ships and Screw Propellers: 

For Naval and Marine Engineers. By John W. Nystrom, late 
Acting Chief Engineer, U. S. N. Second edition, revised, with addi¬ 
tional matter. Illustrated by seven engravings. i2mo. . $1.50 

O’NEILL.—A Dictionary of Dyeing and Calico Printing: 
Containing a brief account of all the Substances and Processes in 
use in the Art of Dyeing and Printing Textile Fabrics ; with Practical 
Receipts and Scientific Information. By Charles'O’Neill, Analy¬ 
tical Chemist. To which is added an Essay on Coal Tar Colors and 
their application to Dyeing and Calico Printing. By A. A. Fesquet, 
Chemist and Engineer. With an appendix on Dyeing and Calico 
Printing, as shown at the Universal Exposition, Paris, 1867- 8vo., 

491 pages.I3.50 

ORTON.—Underground Treasures*. 

How and Where to Find Them. A Key for the Ready Determination 
of all the Useful Minerals within the United States. By James 
Orton, A.M., Late Professor of Natural History in Vassar College, 
N. Y.; Cor. Mem. of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia] 
and of the Lyceum of Natural History, New York; author of the 
•'Andes and the Amazon,” etc. A New Edition, with Additions. 
Illustrated .. $9 








HENRY CAREY BAiRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 21 
--.---- _ . 

OSBORN.—The Prospector’s Field Book and Guide: 

In the Search for and the Easy Determination of Ores and Other 
Useful Minerals. By Prof. H. S. Osborn, LL. *D., Author of 
“The Metallurgy of Iron and Steel;” “A Practical Manual of 
Minerals, Mines, and Mining.” Illustrated by 44 Engravings. 

i2mo.$1.50 

OSBORN.—A Practical Manual of Minerals, Mines and Min' 
ing: 

Comprising the Physical Properties, Geologic Positions, Local Occur¬ 
rence and Associations of the Useful Minerals; their Methods of 
Chemical Analysis and Assay: together with Various Systems of 
Excavating and Timbering, Brick and Masonry Work, during Driv¬ 
ing, Lining, Bracing and other Operations, etc. By Prof. H. S. 
Osborn, LL. D., Author of the “ Metallurgy of Iron and Steel.” 
Illustrated by 171 engravings from original drawings. 8vo. $4 50 
OVERMAN.—The Manufacture of Steel: 

Containing the Practice and Principles of Working and Making Steel. 
A Handbook for Blacksmiths and Workers in Steel and Iron, Wagon 
Makers, Die Sinkers, Cutlers, and Manufacturers of Files and Hard¬ 
ware, of Steel and Iron, and for Men of Science and Art. By 
Frederick Overman, Mining Engineer, Author of the “ Manu¬ 
facture of Lon,” etc. A new, enlarged, and revised Edition. By 
A. A. FESQU<tT, Chemist and Engineer. i2mo. . . $1.50 

OVERMAN.—The Moulder’s and Founder’s Pocket Guide : 

A Treatise on Moulding and Founding in Green-sand, Dry-sand, Loam, 
and Cement; the Moulding of Machine Frames, Mill-gear, Hollow* 
ware, Ornaments, Trinkets, Bells, and Statues; Description of Moulds 
for Iron, Bronze, Brass, and other Metals; Plaster of Paris, Sulphur, 
Wax, etc.; the Construction of Melting Furnaces, the Melting and 
Founding of Metals ; the Composition of Alloys and their Nature, 
etc., etc. By Frederick Overman, M. E. A new Edition, to 
which is added a Supplement on Statuary and Ornamental Moulding, 
Ordnance, Malleable Iron Castings, etc. By A. A. Fesquet, Chem¬ 
ist and Engineer. Illustrated by 44 engravings. l2mo. . $2.0 

PAINTER, GILDER, AND VARNXSHER’S COMPANION;' 
Containing Rules and Regulations in everything relating to the AnS 
of Painting, Gilding, Varnishing, Glass-Staining, Graining, Marbling, 
Sign-Writing, Gilding on Glass, and Coach Painting and Varnishing; 
Tests for the Detection of Adulterations in Oils, Colors, etc.; and a 
Statement of the Diseases to which Painters are peculiarly liable, with 
the Simplest and Best Remedies. Sixteenth Edition. Revised, with 
an Appendix. Containing Colors and Coloring—Theoretical ana 
Practical. Comprising descriptions of a great variety of Additional 
Pigments, their Qualities and Uses, to which are added, Dryers, and 
Modes and Operations of Painting, etc. Together with Chevreui'f 
Principles of Harmony and Contrast of Colors. 121110. Cloth $1.50. 
•pALLETT.— The Miller’s, Millwright’s, and Engineer’s Guide. 
By Henry Pallett. Illustrated. 121110. . . * #2.oa 





22 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


PERCY.—The Manufacture of Russian Sheet-Iron. 

By John Percy, M. D., F. R.S., Lecturer on Metallurgy at th« 
Royal School of Mines, and to The Advance Class of Artillery 
Officers at the Royal Artillery Institution, Woolwich; Author of 
“ Metallurgy.” With Illustrations. 8vo., paper . . 50 eta. 

PERKINS.—Gas and Ventilation : 

Practical Treatise on Gas and Ventilation. With Special Relation 
to Illuminating, Heating, and Cooking by Gas. Including Scientific 
Helps to Engineer-students and others. With Illustrated Diagrams, 

By E. E. Perkins. i2mo., cloth.$1.25 

PERKINS AND STOWE.—A New Guide to the Sheet-iron 
and Boiler Plate Roller : 

Containing a Series of Tables showing the Weight of Slabs and Pile* 
to Produce Boiler Plates, and of the Weight of Piles and the Sizes of 
Bars to produce Sheet-iron; the Thickness of the Bar Gauge 
in decimals; the Weight per foot, and the Thickness on the Bar or 
Wire Gauge of the fractional parts of an inch; the Weight per 
sheet, and the Thickness on the Wire Gauge of Sheet-iron of various 
dimensions to weigh 112 lbs. per bundle; and the conversion of 
Short Weight into Long Weight, and Long Weight into .Short. 
Estimated and collected by G. H. Perkins and J. G. Stowe. $2.5(1 

POWELL—CHANCE—HARRIS.—The Principles of Glass 
Making. 

By Harry J. Powell, B. A. Together with Treatises on Crown and 
Sheet Glass; by Henry Chance, M. A. And Plate Glass, by II. 
G. Harris, Asso. M. Inst. C. E. Illustrated i8mo. . $1.50 

PROCTOR.— A Pocket-Book of Useful Tables and Formulse 
for Marine Engineers : 

By Frank Proctor. Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged. 
Full-bound pocket-book form .• . . . . . $1.50 

REGNAULT.—Elements of Chemistry: 

By M. V. Regnault. translated from the French by T. Forrest 
Betton, M. D , and edited, with Notes, by James C. Booth, Melter 
and Refiner U. S. Mint, and William L. Faber, Metallurgist and 
Mining Engineer. Illustrated by nearly 700 wood-engravings. Com¬ 
prising nearly 1,500 pages. In two volumes, 8vo., cloth . $7.ro 

RICHARDS.—Aluminium : 

Its History, Occurrence, Properties, Metallurgy and Applications, 
including its Alloys. By Joseph W. Richards, A. C., Chemist and 
Practical Metallurgist, Member of the Deutsche Chemische Gesell- 

schaft. Illustrated.$5.00 

RIFFAULT, VERGNAUD, and TOUSSAINT.— A Practical 
Treatise on the Manufacture of Colors for Painting: 
Comprising the Origin, Definition, and Classification of Colors; the 
treatment of the Raw Materials; the best Formulae and the Newest 
Processes for the Preparation of every description of Pigment, and 
the Necessary Apparatus and Directions for its Use; Dryers; the 
Testing. Application, and Qualities of Paints, etc., etc. By MM. 
Rifkault, Vergnaud, and Toussaint. Revised and Edited by M. 



HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 23 


F. Malepeyre. Translated from the French, by A. A. Fesquw; 
Chemist and Engineer. Illustrated by Eighty engravings. In one 
vol„ 8vo., 659 pages. 

ROPER.—A Catechism of High-Pressure, or Non-Condensing 
Steam-Engines : 

Including the Modelling, Constructing, and Management of Steam- 
Engines and Steam Boilers. With valuable illustrations. By Ste¬ 
phen Roper, Engineer. Sixteenth edition, revised and enlarged. 
i8mo., tucks, gilt edge ....... $2.oq 

ROPER.—Engineer’s Handy-Book: 

Containing a full Explanation of the Steam-Engine Indicator, and its 
Use and Advantages to Engineers and Steam Users. With Formula 
for Estimating the Power of all Classes of Steam-Engines; also. 
Facts, Figures, Questions, and Tables for Engineers who wish to 
qualify themselves for the United States Navy, the Revenue Service, 
the Mercantile Marine, or to take charge of the Better Class of Sta¬ 
tionary Steam-Engines. Sixth edition. i6mo.. 690 pages, tucks, 
gilt edge.$3.50 

ROPER.—Hand-Book of Land and Marine Engines : 

Including the Modelling, Construction, Running, and Management 
of Land and Marine Engines and Boilers. With illustrations. By 
Stephen Roper, Engineer. Sixth edition. i2mo., treks, gilt edge. 

# 3 - 5 ° 

ROPER.—Hand-Book of the Locomotive : 

Including the Construction of Engines and Boilers, and the Construc¬ 
tion, Management, and Running of Locomotives. By Stephen 
Roper. Eleventh edition. i8mo., tucks, gilt edge . $2.50 

ROPER.—Hand-Book of Modern Steam Fire-Engines. 

With illustrations. By Stephen % Roper, Engineer. Fourth edition, 
i2mo., tucks, gilt edge ....... $3-5° 

ROPER.—Questions and Answers for Engineers. 

This little book contains all the Questions that Engineers will be 
asked when undergoing an Examination for the purpose of procuring 
Licenses, and they are so plain that any Engineer or Fireman of or 
dinary intelligence may commit them to memory in a short time. By 
Stephen Roper, Engineer. Third edition . . . $3.00 

ROPER. — Use and Abuse of the Steam Boiler. 

By Stephen Roper, Engineer. Eighth edition, with illustrations. 
i8mo., tucks, gilt edge ....... $2.00 

ROSE.—The Complete Practical Machinist: 

Embracing Lathe Work, Vise Work, Drills and Drilling, Taps and 
Dies, Hardening and Tempering, the Making and Use of Tools,- 
Tool Grinding, Marking out Work, etc. By Jospiua Rose. Ulus* 
trated by 356 engravings. Thirteenth edition, thoroughly revised 
and in great part rewritten. In one voi., i2mo., 439 pages $2-5<? 

ROSE.—Mechanical Drawing Self-Taught: 

Comprising Instructions in the Selection and Preparation of Drawing 
Instruments, Elementary Instruction in Practical Mechanical Draw 




24 


HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


ing, together with Examples in Simple Geometry and Elementary 
Mechanism, including Screw Threads, Gear Wheels, Mechanical 
Motions, Engines and Boilers. By Joshua Rose, M. E. Illustrated 
by 330 engravings. 8vo ,313 pages .... #4.00 

ROSE.—The Slide-Valve Practically Explained: 

Embracing simple and complete Practical Demonstrations of th. 
operation of each element in a Slide-valve Movement, and illustrat¬ 
ing the effects of Variations in their Proportions by examples care¬ 
fully selected from the most recent and successful practice. By 
Joshua Rose, M. E. Illustrated by 35 engravings . $i.co 

ROSS.—The Blowpipe in Chemistry, Mineralogy and Geology: 

Containing all Known Methods of Anhydrous Analysis, many Work¬ 
ing Examples, and Instructions for Making Apparatus. By Lieut.- 
Colonel W. A. Ross, R. A., F. G. S. With 120 Illustrations. 

i2mo.. $2.00 

SHAW.—Civil Architecture : 

Being a Complete Theoretical and Practical System of Building, con¬ 
taining the Fundamental Principles of the Art. By Edward Shaw, 
Architect. To which is added a Treatise on Gothic Architecture, etc. 
By Thomas W. Sili.oway and George M. Harding, Architects. 
The whole illustrated by 102 quarto plates finely engraved on copper. 
Eleventh edition. 4to. ....... $10.00 

SHUNK.—A Practical Treatise on Railway Curves and Loca¬ 
tion, for Young Engineers. 

By W. F. SHUNK, C. E. i2tno. Full bound pocket-book form $2.00 

SLATER.—The Manual of Colors and Dye Wares. 

By J. W. Slater. 121110.$3.00 

SLOAN.—American Houses : 

A variety of Original Designs for Rural Buildings. Illustrated by 
26 colored engravings, with descriptive references. By Samuel 
Sloan, Architect. 8vo. . . . . . • . $1.50 

SLOAN.—Homestead Architecture: 

Gmtainii'.g Forty Designs for Villas, Cottages, and Farm-houses, with 
Essays on StyL, Construction, Landscape Gardening, Furniture, etc., 
etc. Illustrated by upwards of 200 engravings. By Samuel Sloan, 
Architect. 8vo. ........ $3.50 

BLOANE.—Ho.re Experiments m Science. 

By T. O’Conor Slc^ne, E. M., A. M., PI;. D. Illustrated by 91 
engravings. i2mo..$1.50 

SMEATON.—Builder’s Pockti-Companion : 

Containing the Elements of Building, Surveying, and Architecture; 
with Practical Rules and Instructions corrected with the subject. 
• By A. C. Smeaton, Civil Engineer, etc. i 2 mo. . . $1.50 

SMITH.—A Manual of Political Economy. 

By E. Peshine Smith. A New Edition, to which is added a full 
Index. i2mo ........ Zi *5 





HENRY CAREY EaIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


25 


SMITH.—Parks and Pleasure-Grounds: 

Or Practical Notes on Country Residences, Villas, Public Parks, and 
Gardens. By Charles H. J. Smith, Landscape Gardener and 
Garden Architect, etc., etc. 121110. .... $2.00 

SMITH.—The Dyer’s Instructor: 

Comprising Practical Instructions in the Art of Dyeing Silk, Cotton, 
Wool, and Worsted, and Woolen Goods; containing nearly 800 
Receipts. To which is added a Treatise on the Art of Padding; and 
the Printing of Silk Warps, Skeins, and Handkerchiefs, and the 
various Mordants and Colors for the different styles of such work. 
By David Smith, Pattern Dyer. i2mo. . . . $2.00 

SMYTH.—A Rudimentary Treatise on Coal and Coal-Mining. 
By Warrington W. Smyth, M. A., F. R. G., President R. G. S. 
of Cornwall. Fifth edition, revised and corrected. With numer¬ 
ous illustrations. i2mo. ...... $1.75 

SNIVELY.—Tables for Systematic Qualitative Chemical AnaL 
ysis. 

By John H. Snively, Phr. D. 8vo. .... $1.00 

SNIVELY.—The Elements of Systematic Qualitative chemical 
Analysis : 

A Hand-book for Beginners. By John H. Snively, Phr. D. i6mo. 

$2.00 

STOKES.—The Cabinet Maker and Upholsterer’s Companion-. 

Comprising the Art of Drawing, as applicable to Cabinet Work; 
Veneering, Inlaying, and Buhl-Work; the Art of Dyeing and Stain¬ 
ing Wood, Ivory, Bone, Tortoise-Shell, etc. Directions for Lacker- 
ing, Japanning, and Varnishing; to make French Polish, Glues, 
Cements, and Composns; with numerous Receipts, useful to work 
men generally. Bv Stokes. Illustrated. A New Edition, with 
an Appendix upor „ench Polishing, Staining, Imitating, Varnishing, 
etc., etc. 121110 ........ $1.25 

STRENGTH AND OTHER PROPERTIES OF METALS; 

Reports of Experiments on the Strength and other Properties of 
Metals for Cannon. With a Description of the Machines for Testing 
Metals, and of the Classification of Cannon in service. By Officers 
of the Ordnance Department, U. S. Army. By authority of the Secre- 
taryofWar. Illustrated by 25 large steel plates. Quarto . $10.00 

SULLIVAN.—Protection to Native Industry. 

By Sir Edward Sullivan, Baronet, author of “Ten Chapters on 
Social Reforms.” 8vo. ....... $1.00 

SULZ.—A Treatise on Beverages : 

Or the Complete Practical Bottler. Full instructions for Laboratory 
Work, with Original Practical Recipes for all kinds of Carbonated 
Drinks, Mineral Waters, Flavorings. Extracts. Syrups, etc. By 
Chas Herman Sulz. Technical Chemist and Practical Bottler 
Illustrated by 428 Engravings. 818 pp. 8vo . . $10.00 




26 HENRY CAREY BAIRl> & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


BYME.—Outlines of an Industrial Science. 

By David Syme. i2mo. . . ... $2.os 

TABLES SHOWING THE WEIGHT OF ROUND, 
SQUARE, AND FLAT BAR IRON, STEEL, ETC., 

By Measurement. Cloth .....* 63 

TAYLOR.—Statistics of Coal: 

Including Mineral Bituminous Substances employed in Arts and 
Manufactures; with their Geographical, Geological, and Commercial 
Distribution and Amount of Production and Consumption on the 
American Continent. With Incidental Statistics of the Iron Manu¬ 
facture. By R. C. Taylor. Second edition, revised by S. S. Halde- 
MAN. Illustrated by five Maps and many wood engravings. 8vo., 
cloth .......... $10.00 

TEMPLETON.—The Practical Examinator on Steam and the 
Steam-Engine: 

With Instructive References relative thereto, arranged for the Use of 
Engineers, Students, and others. By William Templeton, En¬ 
gineer. i2mo. ........ $1.00 

THAUSING.—The Theory and Practice of the Preparation of 
Malt and the Fabrication of Beer: 

With especial reference to the Vienna Process of Brewing. Elab¬ 
orated from personal experience by Julius E. Thausing, Professor 
at the School for Brewers, and at the Agricultural Institute, Modling, 
near Vienna. Translated from the German by William T. Brannt, 
Thoroughly and elaborately edited, with much American matter, and 
according to the latest and most Scientific Practice, by A. Schwarz 
and Dr. A. II. Bauer. Illustrated by 140 Engravings. 8vo., 81 s 

P a S es .$10.00 

THOMAS.—The Modern Practice of Photography: 

By R. W. Thomas, F. C. S. 8vo. .... 25 

THOMPSON.—Political Economy. With Especial Reference 
to the Industrial History of Nations : 

By Robert E. Thompson, M. A., Professor of Social Science in the 
University of Pennsylvania. i2mo. . . . . $1.50 

THOMSON.—Freight Charges Calculator: 

By Andrew Thomson, Freight Agent. 241110. . . $1.25 

TURNER’S (THE) COMPANION: 

Containing Instructions in Concentric, Elliptic, and Eccentric Turn, 
lug; also various Plates of Chucks, Tools, and Instruments; and 
Directions for using the Eccentric Cutter, Drill, Vertical Cutter, and 
Circular Rest; with Patterns and Instructions for working them. 

l2mo.$1.25 

TURNING: Specimens of Fancy Turning Executed on the 
Hand or Foot-Lathe: 

With Geometric, Oval, and Eccentric Chucks, and Elliptical Cutting 
prame. By an Amateur. Illustrated by 30 exquisite Photographs. 
4 *°* . $3.00 






HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


VAILE.—Galvanized-Iron Cornice-Worker’s Manual: 

Containing Instructions in Laying out the Different Mitres, and 
Making Patterns for all kinds of Plain and Circular Work. Also, 
Tables of Weights, Areas and Circumferences of Circles, and other 
Matter calculated to Benefit the Trade. By Charles A. Vaile. 
Illustrated by twenty-one plates. 4to.$5.00 

VILLE.—On Artificial Manures : 

Their Chemical Selection and Scientific Application to Agriculture. 
A series of Lectures given at the Experimental Farm at Vincennes, 
during 1867 and 1874-75. By M. Georges Ville. Translated and 
Edited by William Crookes, F. R. S. Illustrated by thirty-one 
engravings. 8vo., 450 pages.$6.00 

VILLE.—The School of Chemical Manures : 

Or, Elementary Principles in the Use of Fertilizing Agents. From 
the French of M. Geo. Ville, by A. A. Fesquet, Chemist and En¬ 
gineer. With Illustrations. i2mo. .... $1.25 

VOGDES.—The Architect’s and Builder’s Pocket-Companion 
and Price-Book : 

Consisting of a Shoit but Comprehensive Epitome of Decimals, Duo¬ 
decimals, Geometry and Mensuration; with Tables of United States 
Measures, Sizes, Weights, Strengths, etc., of Iron, Wood, Stone, 
Brick, Cement and Concretes, Quantities of Materials in given Sizes 
and Dimensions of Wood, Brick and Stone; and full and complete 
Bills of Prices for Carpenter’s Work and Painting; also, Rules for 
Computing and Valuing Brick and Brick Work, Stone Work, Paint¬ 
ing, Plastering, with a Vocabulary of Technical Terms, etc. By 
Frank W. Vogdes, Architect, Indianapolis, Ind. Enlarged, revised, 
and corrected. In one volume, 368 pages, full-bound, pocket-book 
form, gilt edges ........ #2.00 

Cloth . . ....... 1.50 

VAN CLEVE.—The English and American Mechanic: 

Comprising a Collection of Over Three Thousand Receipts, Rules, 
and Tables, designed for the Use of every Mechanic and Manufac¬ 
turer. By B. Frank Van Cleve. Illustrated. 500 pp. i2mo. $2.00 

WAHNSCHAFFE.—A Guide to the Scientific Examination 
of Soils : 

Comprising Select Methods of Mechanical and Chemical Analysis 
and Physical Investigation. Translated from the German of Dr. F. 
Wahnschaffe. With additions by William T. Brannt. Illus¬ 
trated by 25 engravings. 121110. 177 pages . . . $1.50 

WALL.—Practical Graining: 

With Descriptions of Colors Employed and Tools Used. Illustrated 
by 47 Colored Plates, Representing the Various Woods Used jc 
Interior Finishing. By William E. Wall. 8vo. . $2.5c 

WALTON.—Coal-Mining Described and Illustrated: 

By Thomas H. Walton, Mining Engineer. Illustrated by 24 larg< 
and elaborate Plates, after Actual Workings and Apparatus. $5.00 





28 HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


WARE.—The Sugar Beet. 

Including a History of the Beet Sugar Industry in Europe, Varietiei 
of the Sugar Beet, Examination, Soils, Tillage, Seeds and Sowing 
Yield and Cost of Cultivation, Harvesting, Transportation, Conserva 
tion, Feeding Qualities of the Beet and of the Pulp, etc. By Lewij 
S. Ware, C. E., M. E. Illustrated by ninety engravings. 8vo. 

$ 4-°3 

WARN.—The Sheet-Metal Worker’s Instructor: 

For Zinc, Sheet-Iron, Copper, and Tin-Plate Workers, etc. Contain¬ 
ing a selection of Geometrical Problems; also, Practical and Simple 
Rules for Describing the various Patterns required in the different 
branches of the above Trades. By Reuben II. Warn, Practical 
Tin-Plate Worker. To which is added an Appendix, containing 
Instructions for Boiler-Making, Mensuration of Surfaces and Solids, 
Rules for Calculating the Weights of different Figures of Iron and 
Steel, Tables of the Weights of Iron, Steel, etc. Illustrated by thirty- 
two Plates and thirty-seven Wood Engravings. 8vo. . $3.00 

WARNER.—New Theorems, Tables, and Diagrams, for the 
Computation of Earth-work : 

Designed for the use of Engineers in Preliminary and Final Estimates 
of Students in Engineering, and of Contractors and other non-profes¬ 
sional Computers. In two parts, with an Appendix. Part I. A Prac¬ 
tical Treatise; Part II. A Theoretical Treatise, and the Appendix. 
Containing Notes to the Rules and Examples of Part I.; Explana¬ 
tions of the Construction of Scales, Tables, and Diagrams, and a 
Treatise upon Equivalent Square Bases and Equivalent Level Heights. 
The whole illustrated by numerous original engravings, comprising 
explanatory cuts for Definitions and Problems, Stereometric Scales 
and Diagrams, and a series of Lithographic Drawings from Models; 
Showing all the Combinations of Solid Forms which occur in Railroad 
Excavations and Embankments. By John Warner, A. M., Mining 
and Mechanical Engineer. Illustrated by 14 Plates. A new, revised 
and improved edition. 8vo. ...... $4.00 

WATSON.—A Manual of the Hand-Lathe : 

Comprising Concise Directions for Working Metals of all kinds, 
Ivory, Bone and Precious Woods; Dyeing, Coloring, and French 
Polishing; Inlaying by Veneers, and various methods practised to 
produce Elaborate work with Dispatch, and at Small Expense. By 
Egbert P. Watson, Author of “ The Modern Practice of American 
Machinists and Engineers.” Illustrated by 78 engravings. $1.50 

WATSON.—The Modern Practice of American Machinists and 
Engineers 

Including the Construction, Application, and Use of Drills, Lathe 
Tools, Cutters for Boring Cylinders, and Hollow-work generally, with 
the most Economical Speed for the same ; the Results verified b) 
Actual Practice at the Lathe, the Vise, and on the Floor. Together 



HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


29 


with Workshop Management, Economy of Manufacture, the Steam- 
Engine, Boilers, Gears, Belting, etc., etc. By Egbert P. Watson. 
Illustrated by eighty-six engravings. i2mo. . . . ^.50 

WATSON. —The Theory and Practice of the Art of Weaving 
by Hand and Power • 

With Calculations and Tables for the Use of those connected with the 
Trade. By John Watson, Manufacturer and Practical Machine* 
Maker. Illustrated by large Drawings of the best Power Looms. 
^ vo> •••*••.... $6.00 

WATT. — The Art of Soap Making: 

A Practical Hand-book of the Manufacture of Hard and Soft Soaps, 
Toilet Soaps, etc., including many New Processes, and a Chapter on 
the Recovery of Glycerine from Waste Leys. By Alexander 
Watt. Ill. i2mo..$3.00 

WEATHERLY.—Treatise on the Art of Boiling Sugar, Crys« 
tallizing, Lozenge-making, Comfits, Gum Goods,.. 

And other processes for Confectionery, etc., in which are explained, 
in an easy and familiar manner, the various Methods of Manufactur¬ 
ing every Description of Raw and Refined Sugar Goods, as sold by 

Confectioners and others. i2mo.$1.50 

WIGHTWICK.—Hints to Young Architects: 

Comprising Advice to those who, while yet at school, are destined 
to the Profession; to such as, having passed their pupilage, are about 
to travel; and to those who, having completed their education, are 
about to practise. Together with a Model Specification involvirg a 
great variety of instructive and suggestive matter. By Georgb 
WlGHTWlCK, Architect. A new edition, revised and considerably 
enlarged; comprising Treatises on the Principles of Construction 
and Design. By G. Huskisson Guillaume, Architect. Numerous 

illustrations. One vol. i2mo. $2.00 

WILL.—Tables of Qualitative Chemical Analysis. 

With an Introductory Chapter on the Course of Analysis. By Pro¬ 
fessor Heinrich Will, of Giessen, Germany. Third American, 
from the eleventh German edition. Edited by Charles F. Himes^ 
Ph. D., Professor of Natural Science, Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa 

8vo. . .$1.50 

WILLIAMS.—On Heat and Steam: 

Embracing New Views of Vaporization, Condensation, and ExpP> 
sion. By Charles Wye Williams, A. I. C. E. Illustrated 8vo. 


$2.50 

WILSON.—A Treatise on Steam Boilers : 

Their Strength, Construction, and Economical Working. By Robert 
Wilson. Illustrated i2mo. ...... 552.50 

WILSON.—First Principles of Political Economy: 

With Reference to Statesmanship and the Progress of Civilization. 
By Professor W. D. Wilson, of the Cornell University. A new and 
revised edition. i2mo. ....... $1.50 








30 HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


WOHLER.—A Hand-Book of Mineral Analysis: 

By F. Wohler, Professor of Chemistry in the University of Gottin¬ 
gen. Edited by Henry B. Nason, Professor of Chemistry in the 
Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York. Illustrated. 
i2mo. .......... $2.5 o 

WORSSAM.—On Mechanical Saws: 

From the Transactions of the Society of Engineers. 1869. By S. W. 
Worssam, Jr. Illustrated by eighteen large plates. 8vo. $2.50 


RECENT ADDITIONS. 

BRANNT.—Varnishes, Lacquers, Printing Inks and Sealing- 
Waxes : 

Their Raw Materials and their Manufacture, to which is added the 
Art of Varnishing and Lacquering, including the Preparation of Put¬ 
ties and of Stains for Wood, Ivory, Bone, Horn, and Leather. By 
William T. Brannt. Illustrated by 39 Engravings, 338 pages, 
i2mo. $3.00 

BRANNT—The Practical Scourer and Garment Dyer: 

Comprising Dry or Chemical Cleaning; the Art of Removing Stains; 
Fine Washing; Bleaching and Dyeing of Straw Hats, Gloves, and 
Feathers of all kinds; Dyeing of Worn Clothes of all fabrics, in¬ 
cluding Mixed Goods, by One Dip; and the Manufacture of Soaps 
and Fluids for Cleansing Purposes. Edited by William T. Brannt, 
Editor of “ The Techno-Chemical Receipt Book.” Illustrated. 
203 pages. i2mo..#2.00 

BRANNT.—The Metallic Alloys: 

A Practical Guide for the Manufacture of all kinds of Alloys, Amal¬ 
gams and Solders used by Metal Workers, especially by Bell Founders, 
Bronze Workers, Tinsmiths, Gold and Silver Workers, Dentists, etc., 
etc., as well as their Chemical and Physical Properties. Edited 
chiefly from the German of A. Krupp and Andreas Wildberger, with 
additions by Wm. T. Brannt. Illustrated. i2mo. $ 3 -°° 

BRANNT.—A Practical Treatise on the Manufacture of Vine¬ 
gar and Acetates, Cider, and Fruit-Wines; 

Preservation of Fruits and Vegetables by Canning and Evaporation; 
Preparation of Fruit-Butters, Jellies, Marmalades, Catchups, Pickles, 
Mustards, etc. Edited from various sources. By William T. 
Brannt. Illustrated by 79 Engravings. 479 pp. 8vo. $5.00 

BRANNT.—The Metal Worker’s Handy-Book of Receipts 
and Processes : 

Being a Collection of Chemical Formulas and Practical Manipula¬ 
tions for the working of all Metals ; including the Decoration and 
Beautifying of Articles Manufactured therefrom, as well as their 
Preservation. Edited from various sources. By William T. 
Brannt. Illustrated. i2mo. $2.50 







HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.'S CATALOGUE. 


3i 


DEITE.—A Practical Treatise on the Manufacture c.f Per^ 
fumery: 

Comprising directions for making all kinds of Perfumes, Sachet 
Powders, Fumigating Materials, Dentifrices, Cosmetics, etc., with a 
full account of the Volatile Oils, Balsams, Resins, and other Natural 
and Artificial Perfume-substances, including the Manufacture of 
Fruit Ethers, and tests of their purity. By Dr. C. Deite, assisted 
by L. Borchert, F. Eichbaum, E. Kugler, H. Toeffner, and 
other experts. From the German, by Wm. T. Brannt. 28 Engrav¬ 
ings* 35 8 pages. 8vo..$3.00 

EDWARDS.—American Marine Engineer, Theoretical and 
Practical: 

With Examples of the latest and most approved American Practice. 
By Emory Edwards. 85 illustrations. i2mo. . . $ 2.50 

EDWARDS.—goo Examination Questions and Answers: 

For Engineers and Firemen (Land and Marine) who desire to ob¬ 
tain a United States Government or State License. Pocket-book 
form, gilt edge ........ $1.50 

POSSELT.—Technology of Textile Design : 

Being a Practical Treatise on the Construction and Application of 
Weaves for all Textile Fabrics, with minute reference to the latest 
Inventions for Weaving. Containing also an Appendix, showing 
the Analysis and giving the Calculations necessary for the Manufac- 
tuie of the various Textile Fabrics. By E. A. Posselt, Head 
Master Textile Department, Pennsylvania Museum and School of 
Industrial Art, Philadelphia, with over 1000 illustrations. 29 2 
pages. 4to.$5-°° 

POSSELT.—The Jacquard Machine Analysed and Explained: 

With an Appendix on the Preparation of Jacquard Cards, and 
Practical Hints to Learners of Jacquard Designing. By E. A. 
Posselt. W T ith 230 illustrations and numerous diagrams. 127 pp. 
4 t<*.# 3 -°o 

POSSELT.—The Structure of Fibres, Yarns and Fabrics: 

Being a Practical Treatise for the Use of all Persons Employed in 
the Manufacture of Textile Fabrics, containing a Description of the 
Growth and Manipulation of Cotton, Wool, Worsted, Silk, Flax, 
Jute, Ramie, China Grass and Hemp, and Dealing with all Manu¬ 
facturers’ Calculations for Every Class of Material, also Giving 
Minute Details for the Structure of all kinds of Textile Fabrics, and 
an Appendix of Arithmetic, specially adapted for Textile Purposes. 
By E. A. Posselt. Over 400 Illustrations, quarto. . $10.00 

RICH.—Artistic Horse-Shoeing: 

A Practical and Scientific Treatise, giving Improved Methods of 
Shoeing, with Special Directions for Shaping Shoes to Cure Different 
Diseases of the Foot, and for the Correction of Faulty Action in 
Trotters. By George E. Rich. 62 Illustrations. 153 pages. 

i2mo.$1.00 









32 HENRY CAREY BAIRD & CO.’S CATALOGUE. 


RICHARDSON.—Practical Blacksmithing: 

A Collection of Articles Contributed at Different Times by .Skilled 
Workmen to the columns of “ The Blacksmith and Wheelwright,” 
and Covering nearly the Whole Range of Blacksmithing, from the 
Simplest Job of Work to some of the Most Complex Forgings. 
Compiled and Edited by M. T. Richardson. 

Vol. I. 210 Illustrations. 224 pages. l2mo. . . $1.00 

Vol. II. 230 Illustrations. 262 pages. i2mo. . . $1.00 

Vol. III. 390 Illustrations. 307 pages. i2mo. . , $1 00 

Vol. IV. 226 Illustrations. 276 pages. l2mo. , . $1.00 

RICHARDSON—The Practical Horseshoer: 

Being a Collection of Articles on Horseshoeing in all its Branche* 
which have appeared from time to time in the columns of “ 1 he 
Blacksmith and Wheelwright,” etc. Compiled and edited by M. T. 
Richardson. 174 illustrations. ..... #1.00 

ROPER.—Instructions and Suggestions for Engineers and 
Firemen: 

By Stephen Roper, Engineer. i8mo. Morocco . $2.00 

ROPER.—The Steam Boiler: Its Care and Management: 

By Stephen Roper, Engineer. 12mo., tuck, gilt edges. $2.00 

ROPER.—The Young Engineer’s Own Book: 

Containing an Explanation of the Principle and Theories on which 
the Steam Engine as a Prime Mover is Based. By Stephen Roper, 
Engineer. 160 illustrations, 363 pages. i8mo., tuck . #3.00 

ROSE.—Modern Steam-Engines: 

An Elementary Treatise upon the Steam-Engine, written in Plain 
language ; for Use in the Workshop as well as in the Drawing Office. 
Giving Full Explanations of the Construction of Modern Steairw 
Engines : Including Diagrams showing their Actual operation. To¬ 
gether with Complete but Simple Explanations of the operations of 
Various Kinds of Valves, Valve Motions, and Link Motions, etc., 
thereby Enabling the Ordinary Engineer to clearly Understand the 
Principles Involved in their Construction and Use, and to Plot out 
their Movements upon the Drawing Board. By Joshua Rose. M. E. 
Illustrated by 422 engravings. Revised. 358 pp. . . $6.00 


ROSE.—Steam Boilers: 

A Practical Treatise on Boiler Construction and Examination, for the 
Use of Practical Boiler Makers, Boiler Users, and Inspectors; and 
embracing in plain figures all the calculations necessary in Designing 
or Classifying Steam Boilers. By Joshua Rose, M. E. Illustrated 
by 73 engravings. 250 pages. 8vo. .... $ 2.^0 

SCHRIBER.—The Complete Carriage and Wagon Painter: 

A Concise Compendium of the Art of Painting Carriages, Wagons, 
and Sleighs, embracing Full Directions in all the Various Branches, 
including Lettering, Scrolling, Ornamenting, Striping, Varnishing, 
and Coloring, with numerous Recipes for Mixing Colors. 73 Illus¬ 
trations. I77pp. i2mo.jfi.od 





























































































